


Ghost Stories

by kimurasato



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-08
Updated: 2016-12-26
Packaged: 2018-01-24 01:29:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 63
Words: 59,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1586651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kimurasato/pseuds/kimurasato
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of short stories that include a variety of different pairings, and sometimes no pairing at all. Check chapter summaries to see what pairing or characters will be involved.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Firsts

**Author's Note:**

> Summary: Sam reflects on her memories with Paulina.  
> Characters: Paulina x Sam

The first time she remembered meeting her was the first day of high school. It was hate at first sight. She was beautiful and popular but screamed of shallowness and a superficial personality. Men flocked to her like moths to a flame, and they were burned at every turn. She used men, used her friends, but still everyone loved her. Everyone except for Sam.

The first time she saw a different side of Paulina was sophomore year when she found her in the library. It was the last place she expected to meet the other woman, but even more surprising was that they were both reaching for the same book, the complete works of Edgar Allen Poe. It was the first time they had a real conversation with each other, and Sam found her opinion of the other woman changing. It wasn't simply a shared love for the work of Poe, but the other things that she learned about the woman that day, like the fact that Paulina actually spent time volunteering in a soup kitchen and was aspiring to be a biochemist. That last fact left Sam's mind spinning.

The first time she was there to comfort the other woman was in junior year. Paulina's father was in a terrible car accident one night, but instead of calling up her satellite of a friend Star, Paulina called Sam. She didn't know what else to do for the woman, too stunned by that simple fact, so Sam sat there holding Paulina through the night as she cried on her shoulder, needing nothing more than someone to be there for her. Her father had a broken leg, a nasty head wound, and needed several stitches across his abdomen but was otherwise fine in the end.

The first time they kissed was just before graduation. Paulina found her in the crowd of graduating students dressed in caps and gowns and dragged Sam off to some secluded spot where they went unnoticed. Sam was confused by the action but didn't get the chance to speak before Paulina pressed soft lips to hers. It was quick and chaste, a simple meeting of lips, but Paulina darted away and disappeared into the pack of students. Sam could only stand there, feeling numb everywhere except for the slight tingle of her lips.

The first time they met again, they were twenty-eight and living in California. Paulina was working at some lab that specialized in biochemistry while Sam got a job as a journalist. They didn't discuss the kiss, but they started meeting weekly to talk. It started with getting coffee a few times then progressed to lunch. Eventually they started having dinner together. It wasn't until one night when Paulina kissed her goodnight before they parted ways after dinner that Sam realized maybe they had started dating at some point. After two and half years, they moved into an apartment together, and Sam couldn't remember being happier than she was when she was with Paulina. The journey was strange with several ups and downs, and sometimes, she didn't know how hate turned into love, but she was happy for all the twists and turns that led her to Paulina.


	2. Stay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Sometimes, you just want more.  
> Characters: Paulina x Sam

"Stay."

The simple command stopped her before she could climb out of the bed. She turned back, meeting gazes with those emerald eyes that pleaded quietly but didn't demand the other to comply with the simply wish. The full mouth curved into a frown as she forced herself to look away from those eyes.

"We agreed this wouldn't become anything more," Sam mumbled, but even as she said it, she felt the lie in those words. She wanted more from the beginning. The first moment their lips met in that moment of passion, she knew she lost. She pretended that first time was a mistake, agreeing with the other woman as she panicked over the night they spent together after drinking too much at some club. They agreed that it wouldn't happen again. They agreed that it meant nothing. They agreed that they wouldn't let it become something. They broke each of those agreements, finding each other like they were drawn each other.

The sheets rustled and the mattress shifted. Then arms wrapped around her, pulling her back against the other woman. "I," the woman said hesitantly, her warm breath washing over Sam's ear. "I may want something more."

Sam closed her eyes, almost not believing the soft confession mumbled so close to her ear. Her heart skipped at the thought that the other woman wanted the exact same thing that she wanted. "I might love you, Paulina." Her body tensed when the words left her, fearing she might have scared the other woman away.

Paulina rested her chin on Sam's shoulder, her arms loosely wrapped around her waist. "Then stay."

Sam leaned back against her as a laugh bubbled up through her. Why was she scared of being rejected when the other woman pleaded so earnestly for her to stay? A smile ghosted across her face as she agreed to stay.


	3. After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: When all is over and silence fills the house, it’s the perfect time for two people to finally speak.  
> Characters: Ember x Paulina

When everyone was gone and all the noise faded away, Paulina sighed at the mess left behind in her house. She wondered, sometimes, why she bothered hosting parties. They were fun, getting to meet and mingle with people and dancing to the pounding beats of the music blaring through the house. But the afterward, she was left alone to deal with the aftermath: the trash littering her house, the items broken during the frenzy activities, and spilled drinks staining the carpets and furniture. It was exactly at this time that she told herself that she would never host another party, though she knew in the end that she would break that promise.

"They never stay to see the clean up."

The comment drew Paulina's attention away from scrubbing up a stain in the carpet. She stared at the woman leaning on the door frame to the front room. For a brief moment, she was stunned to see the famous singer there, even if Ember did play at the party. She turned away, her heart giving a slight flutter at the fact that the singer didn't immediately leave after her set was finished. "It's not the surprising," she mumbled, rubbing furiously at the stain to try to rid it from the white carpet. "They merely come to have a good time. Once the party ends, they have no reason to stick around."

"That's probably something we have in common." Ember pushed away from the door frame and walked over to where Paulina knelt on the floor. "When the concert is over and all the fans have left, they don't see all the work that goes into cleaning up after their mess." Picking up another towel, she helped to clean up the stain.

Paulina's emerald eyes flicked toward the singer, and her cheeks flushed lightly when she noticed how close they were. "You didn't have to stay behind," she mumbled as she focused on her work. "You don't have any obligation to stay back and help with this." After all the parties that she hosted, she was used to doing the clean up alone.

Ember shrugged. "I try to help out when I can after a concert. But they already have so many people being paid just to do the clean up, so I usually get shooed aside to be out of their way."

Paulina paused to stare at the singer. "I didn't think musicians did things like that."

Ember laughed. "Most don't," she agreed with a wry smile. "But I don't know. I guess I like cleaning up the mess left behind because of me." There was a look in her eyes as the smile faded, like she was recalling some sad memory. "And it allows me some quality time with you."

"With me?" Paulina stuttered in surprise.

"Of course," Ember answered, their hands accidentally bumping as they worked. "Did you think all those letters you got back were written by my manager?"

Paulina's shoulder hunched up in a brief shrug. "I didn't think you would come all this way just to talk to me." She looked away, ignoring the flutter inside her as their fingers laced together.

"Why wouldn't I want to talk to you? I read over your letters almost every night." Ember leaned forward with a smile tugging at her mouth. "My other fan letters mostly just spew out adoration for me and my music. You're about the only one that actually talks to me like a person, and I've been wanting to get the chance to talk to you like this. Face to face, not through written word."

Paulina laughed, almost giggled with nervousness. "I always worried you'd think I was weird writing to you like we were old friends rather than a fan to someone they admire."

"I liked it. It was nice actually getting to know someone, talking to someone about real things instead of useless chatter about their love for me. I liked getting to know you."

Paulina turned her head back to the singer, and she gasped when lips pressed gently against her lips, sealing their mouths in a soft kiss.

"And I hope we can continue getting to know each other," Ember whispered when she pulled back, her lips nearly brushing against Paulina's with each word she spoke.


	4. One Year

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Kwan hated dressing up, but for a special occasion, he’d make an exception.  
> Characters: Kwan x Danny

Tugging at the pinstriped vest he wore, Kwan made a face at his reflection. He never thought he looked good in a suit. It always seemed to fit wrong. His shoulders too broad. The sleeves of his stiff collared dress shirt hugged a bit too tightly around his biceps. He felt like a monkey in this suit.

When a knock sounded at the door, his nervousness set in, washing away his grumbles about his ridiculous appearance in a suit. It was big, important date night, a first year anniversary, and he didn't want to mess anything up by answering the door looking like some slob that threw on whatever sweats he could find lying around on the floor of his bedroom. He wasn't even sure where they would be going on their date, and he didn't know how dressed up he needed to be. Or if he was too dressed up. He resisted the urge to start biting at his nails like he tended to do when he got nervous and too much in his head.

Kwan left his bedroom and went to answer the door before he made his date wait for too long. After he opened the door, a bright smile spread onto his face when he spotted the blue eyed man standing in the hallway. Danny smiled warmly back at him, holding a bouquet of ice crystal roses, and Kwan was surprised the man would have them while standing in the apartment hallway where anyone might spot them. Roses made of ice would certainly gain him some questionable looks from Kwan's neighbors.

"Happy anniversary!" Danny took a step forward and tilted his head up, catching Kwan's surprised mouth in a gentle kiss. Kwan grinned, cupping Danny's face as he enjoyed the tender kiss. They shared one amazing year together already, and he hoped there would be many more to follow.


	5. Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Danny was captured by the GIW.  
> Characters: Danny and Wulf

Tentatively he reached up, touching just under his left eye. With a hiss, he yanked his hand away, biting down hard on his lip. The eyeball wasn't there anymore. It hadn't been there for three days. The empty socket still felt strange, and he couldn't bring himself to touch above his cheekbone. His remaining eye trailed across the room to where the scientists were. They had taken more than just one eyeball from him. They took ectoplasm samples. They yanked out three of his teeth. He pressed a hand to his side where they stitched him up after poking around inside him, examining his insides, taking samples for what, he wasn't entirely sure. All he knew was that he hurt, he was tired, he felt so alone, and he wanted to see his family again.

He tried phasing out of the containment field they shoved him into on the first day of his capture, but something about the room kept his powers from working. He couldn't fly or go intangible or invisible. His energy balls fizzled out when he tried to conjure them. He couldn't do anything to protect himself from the scientists getting their hands on him and cutting him up.

His eye wandered around the containment field for what must be able the millionth time during his six days of captivity. He needed to get out of here, but he couldn't figure out how. He wished he had some amazingly useful ability right then. He wished he could write himself out of there like Ghost Writer probably could. Desiree's wish granting ability would be useless since she could only grant other people's wishes, and he certainly didn't want to grant wishes for the Guys in White. If he were Clockwork, he could freeze time at the moment they opened the containment field. Then he could fly right out of it and be gone before they even knew what happened.

He searched the room for some means of escape, some way to break down the containment field so that he could use his powers freely. But he couldn't reach anything from within the field. They always made certain that he was strapped down before they opened the field to gather more samples. Clamping his eye shut, he took a deep breath, tried to clear his mind, find some answer to this problem. He could do it. He could get himself out of this situation. He knew he could. He just needed to think about it. But the answer wasn't coming to him. At the moment, he was about as useless as he was as a human.

The fluorescent lights shut off in the room as the red emergency lights started flashing. A siren screamed through the room, making the scientists bumble about in panic. They knocked into each other, banging over jars and vials, samples spilling onto the floor. One of the agents opened the door, ordering them out of the room. He only caught something about an intruder in their facility and that it would be best for the scientists to head for the panic room specifically designed to protect them from ghost attacks.

The door slammed closed when the last of the scientists fled the room. Danny sat very still, listening to the sirens ringing in his ears. A ghost attacked the GIW facility? What crazy, mad ghost would do something like that? He couldn't think of any ghost that would even consider something like that. Usually ghosts stayed as far away from the GIW as they could.

When claws appeared out of nowhere in front of him, glowing green and far too familiar, Danny leaped to his feet. His heart nearly stopped as the claws tore through the air, ripping open a hole that revealed the usual swirling green of the Ghost Zone. The face that peeked through the portal made Danny sigh with relief.

"Wulf!" He had never been happier to see the wolf ghost in all his life than at that moment. With his ability to open portals between the Ghost Zone and the real world, Wulf could easily break into the GIW facility and give them a scare. "How did you know where I was?"

"Friends," Wulf answered, holding out a paw for Danny to take.

His portals didn't stay open infinitely, and if Danny stood around like an idiot, it would close on him. He grabbed hold of Wulf's paw, allowing the ghost to pull him through the portal into the Ghost Zone. Once there, Danny spied Tucker and Sam in the Specter Speeder, looking worried to death about him. Danny managed a smile, trying to assure them that he was all right despite the way he looked. Maybe he wasn't completely all right, but at least he wouldn't suffer any more for right now at the hands of the GIW.


	6. Interruptions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Kitty thinks about things while watching Danny fight.  
> Characters: Danny x Kitty

Kitty sighed miserably as the sounds of fighting filled the air. Another red beam of energy slammed into Danny Phantom, sending him hurtling to the street below before he managed to correct his course and soar back up toward the ghost he was fighting. Mouth pursing in a tight frown, Kitty glanced at the watch on her wrist. It was growing close to midnight at this point, and Kitty scowled down at the time on the watch. Danny finally stunned his opponent long enough to pull out his Thermos and suck the ghost inside it.

Slapping the cap back onto the Thermos, Danny released a sigh of relief. His green eyes darted toward Kitty, sitting on top of a nearby building with her foul mood written clearly in the glower on her face. He drifted toward her, taking up a seat next to her on the ledge of the building.

"Sorry," Danny mumbled with his gaze cast downward as he set the Thermos beside him. "I promise that's the last one."

"That's what you said the last time," Kitty argued, folding her arms. She turned her head away from him with a huff. "I thought dating you would be better than Johnny since you're not constantly flirting with other women, but having you constantly flying off to fight ghosts really isn't all that better after all."

Danny hung his head. "I know. I've been a pretty bad boyfriend." A beeping from the device on his wrist alerted him to yet another ghostly interruption.

Kitty ground her teeth as she glared at the ghost detection device. Her ecto energy signature was keyed into it to identify her as a non threat so that her presence didn't constantly set it off when she was around Danny. But it still seemed to beep with irritating consistency, leaving them hardly more than five seconds together sometimes. It amazed her sometimes that they ever even managed to have a date with all the ghost fighting Danny did.

Sighing, Danny pulled out a cell phone from somewhere within his suit and started typing quickly. Kitty raised a curious eyebrow when Danny didn't immediately apologize again to her before flying off to deal with the latest threat.

"What are you doing?" Kitty asked with a wariness in her voice as she eyed the half ghost beside her.

"Vlad wants to improve his image with people," Danny explained as he finished with writing his message. "What better way to show how much he's changed than to let him play the hero every once and a while?" Tucking the phone back into his suit, Danny turned back to her with a grin on his face. "And if he takes over part time as town hero, that will give us more time to spend together. Now where were we before that last interruption?"

"I think we were right about," Kitty smiled as she leaned in close to Danny, "here." Her lips nearly brushed over his as he returned the smile.

"Happy anniversary, Kitty." Danny tilted his head forward the remaining distant, sealing their mouths together in a gentle kiss. Kitty grinned happily into the kiss as Danny reached up to cup her face with his hand, pulling her closer to him. Only a year passed since they started dating, and already Kitty felt happier with Danny than she ever did in all her years dating Johnny.


	7. Masked

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Someone unexpected shows up at the masquerade dance.  
> Characters: Danny x Sam

Sam hated masquerade dances. She hated that everyone wore masks and she couldn’t identify each person. Paulina, being the queen of the school, got her way once again. The dance committee voted, and Paulina’s idea won unanimously. Sam wasn’t even going to bother coming to the dance, but Tucker convinced her to come despite not having a date.

Feeling a tap on her shoulder, Sam spun around. “May I have this dance?” asked the man, bowing to her. Sam blushed, taking his hand. Even with the black mask on, Sam knew exactly who the man was. The glowing green eyes and snow white hair were a dead giveaway.

“I didn’t think you would come,” Sam whispered as they walked onto the dance floor.

“I didn’t even know about the dance until I talked to Tucker.” Danny ignored the looks they received from their classmates.

“Are you back for good?” Sam asked in a hopeful tone.

“For a little while.” Danny sighed. “I still have a lot of work to do in the Ghost Zone.”

“Oh.” Sam frowned in disappointment. “How much longer will you be in the Ghost Zone?”

“Honestly, I have no idea.” Danny held Sam closer as they danced. “All these debates are giving me a headache. There is no way to create a set of laws for them to follow because we can’t get all the ghosts to agree to everything. I almost think we should just go back to fighting. At least that was easy.”

“So when are you going back?” Sam wished Danny didn’t have to go. She missed him over the past year, and she hated having to act like she had no idea where he was when Maddie and Jack went around searching for him.

“I thought I would stay a few days, spend some time with my friends,” Danny replied. “Spend a lot of time with just you and me.” He raised a hand and cupped Sam’s bright red cheek. They both leaned in, and their lips met in a gentle kiss as the world around them seemed to melt away.


	8. Talents

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Ember discovers one of Paulina’s talents.  
> Characters: Ember x Paulina

“That’s a nice drawing,” Ember commented as she looked over Paulina’s shoulder. “A guitar has six strings though.”

Paulina blushed darkly as she covered the drawing with a hand. “You’re not supposed to see it yet.”

“I never knew you could draw so well.” Ember leaned on Paulina as she tried to move her hand to see the drawing again. “Why are you hiding it?”

“It was supposed to be a surprise.” Paulina pouted, moving her hand aside. “I thought maybe you might like it as a cover for you next CD.”

“What a thoughtful girlfriend I have!” Ember grinned. “The head of the guitar looks wrong though. Are my hips really that big?”

“It’s just a practice sketch!” Paulina whined, shoving Ember off her. “I know there’s a lot wrong with it. I’ll fix everything in the final version.” She turned around in her seat. “Your hips aren’t big at all.”

“Good. I was afraid I would have to go on a diet,” Ember said in relief.

“How does a ghost go on a diet?” Paulina asked with a puzzled expression.

“I have no idea.” Ember laughed. She took Paulina’s hand and pulled her from the chair. “Let’s go dancing! We haven’t been out in a while.” Paulina smiled, letting Ember drag her from the apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of these stories are insanely short. I apologize!


	9. Confusion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Alicia doesn’t understand what she’s feeling toward someone that appeared in her life.  
> Characters: Wulf x Alicia

A year passed since Alicia first met Wulf. Their first encounter was when Wulf scared away one of the many salesmen that came to Alicia’s house. She didn’t know why he stayed with her, but she was glad he did. Wulf wasn’t a scary beast in Alicia’s eyes; instead, she felt warmth and comfort with him around. She didn’t understand why though. Perhaps it was because Wulf actually listened when she spoke and protected her from the obnoxious salesmen. Alicia enjoyed his company, even during the silent moments when he curled up at her feet while she read at night.

Two months passed before she discovered the truth behind Wulf. The full moon shone brightly in the sky as Wulf, now a tall, slightly muscular man, stood in front of her. Alicia was terrified and felt betrayed by his deceit. She had been hurt many times before by men lying to her. It was the reason she remained single for so many years after her divorce. Logic and reason fled her mind, and she gave Wulf the chance to explain.

A ghost. That was what Wulf said he was. He had no explanation for why he was like this in his afterlife, why he changed into a man under the light of the full moon. He could barely recall his life, but he assumed that wolves greatly influenced him or perhaps caused his death. He promised to leave if that was what she wished, but strangely, Alicia asked him to stay.

“What’s that matter?” Wulf asked as he raised his head to stare at the woman.

“Ah! It’s nothing,” Alicia replied with a smile before returning her attention to her book. Recently, there was a change in their relationship, and it struck fear into her heart. How could she love someone who was dead? It confused her, and she repeatedly tried to shake the thoughts from her mind.


	10. Shooting Star

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Paulina wishes a certain someone could attend a dance with her.  
> Character: Desiree x Paulina

Paulina sighed as she leaned on the rail of the balcony outside the ballroom. Their school managed to raise enough money to hold the senior prom in the fanciest hotel in Amity Park. She did all the planning, even got a popular local band from the area to perform, and everything was going perfectly.

Except her date. She wasn't able to ask the person that she wanted to go with, so she settled on Dash. However, he was proving to be the worst date ever.

When she noticed a shooting star fly through the night sky, Paulina closed her eyes, whispering “I wish” before completing the thought in her mind.

“Did I hear someone say wish?” asked a woman from behind Paulina. She turned and gasped in shock when she saw Desiree standing in the doorway.

“D-Desiree?” Paulina stuttered. “What are you doing here?”

“I had a feeling my services would be needed here,” Desiree replied as she approached Paulina. “Actually, Danny mentioned that you were having a dance here and made quite a fuss about how depressed you seemed because you couldn’t go with the person you wanted. So, what were you about to wish for?”

“It already came true.” Paulina grinned, making a mental note to thank Danny for convincing Desiree to come. However, the grin faded when she noticed Dash heading toward them. “Now if only you could do something about Dash.”

“I think that can be arranged,” Desiree said with a snap of her fingers. Paulina watched as a pink mist circled around Dash’s ankles. His arms flailed about as he tried to maintain his balance, but he fell, knocking Danny to the ground in the process.

“Oh, it’s nice having a wish granting ghost for a girlfriend.” Paulina smirked, wrapping her arms around Desiree’s neck as the tune of slow song played softly in the background.


	11. Star Filled Sky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Ember is bored waiting for Paulina to finish studying.  
> Characters: Ember x Paulina

“Aren’t you finished yet?” Ember asked from where she laid on Paulina’s bed. She was bored out of her mind waiting for the woman to finish her school work.

Paulina turned around in the chair at her desk. “I told you earlier that I would be busy studying all night,” she said, removing her glasses to rub her tired eyes. “If you’re bored, then it’s your own fault for stopping by to visit me.”

“Can’t you take a break?” Ember was surprised to learn that Paulina needed reading glasses. She always assumed the woman had perfect vision.

“I suppose a little break wouldn’t hurt.” Paulina stood. “We can take a little walk around the campus, but then I have to get right back to studying.”

“Not what I was hoping for, but I’ll take it.” Ember grinned as she followed Paulina out the door to her dorm room.

They left the building and walked under the canopy created by the trees, heading toward the courtyard in the center of the college’s campus. When they reached a clearing, Paulina glanced up at the night sky with stars twinkling high above them like little diamonds.

“There’s Orion’s belt,” Paulina said, pointing toward three stars in a line.

“I already know you’re smart,” Ember said with a roll of her eyes. “You don’t need to keep proving it to me.”

“It’s the only thing I actually recall from astronomy class,” Paulina said, pouting in disappointment that the ghost wasn’t impressed at all. “Would you rather I regale you with this year’s winter fashion?”

“No, I would rather you regale me with your kisses.” Ember smirked at the light blush coloring Paulina’s cheeks.


	12. Short and Sweet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: A taste of something new.  
> Characters: Phantom x Fenton

It felt strange to Danny as he walked through the crowd at the carnival. It was strange because he felt like a part of him was missing. That missing piece currently floated at his side, visible only to himself. After the incident during his freshman year when he separated his ghost self from his human self, Danny started to hear a voice in his head. He recognized it immediately for it was identical to his own voice, though it sounded somehow different. Phantom, as Danny started referring to him as, disliked being trapped inside Danny’s body all of the time. So Danny used the Fenton Ghost Catcher to separate them again from time to time.

“What’s that you’re eating?” Phantom asked curiously, pointing a gloved hand at the fluffy pink stuff in Danny’s hand.

“It’s called cotton candy,” Danny murmured as he glanced around to make sure no one overheard him. He grew used to explaining things in this manner to Phantom, but he couldn’t let go of the paranoid feeling that one day someone would hear him.

Phantom stared thoughtfully at a small piece of the fluffy candy caught on the corner of the human’s lips. Danny was oblivious to the wicked smile that crossed Phantom’s face until he felt an icy tongue run up his cheek, licking the piece of cotton candy and freezing his body with its cool touch.

“Mm, it’s quite sweet, though it’s a shame it doesn’t last very long,” Phantom said, still smiling as he floated a few feet from Danny, whose face exploded into a dark blush.


	13. An Early Gift

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: He always hated winter, but maybe it isn't always so bad.  
> Characters: Dash x Danny

“I hate this time of year,” Danny grumbled as he wrapped his thick winter coat around him, trying to keep himself warm despite the frigid weather. He trudged through the snow still blanketing the sidewalk as he followed after the tall, blond man, falling farther behind with each stumble over the large mounds of snow.

“You’re crazy, Fenton,” Dash said as he turned around, not surprised to see how far behind Danny had fallen. “This is the best time of the year. I can’t believe you’re still down about Christmas.”

Danny glared at Dash. “You’re not the one getting shoved around and almost falling with every step in this snow,” he snapped as he gestured at the white coated streets and the crowds of people bustling about as they shopped for presents. “You know I hate the cold, yet you still dragged me out here, you selfish bastard!” His shout caused a few shoppers to pause and stare at them.

Dash took Danny’s hand and dragged him down the street; his cheeks red, though Danny couldn’t tell if it was a blush or simply from the cold. When they reached the end of the block, Dash pulled Danny into a small shop before the raven haired man had a chance to discover its name.

“I did drag you out here for selfish reasons,” Dash admitted as he walked to the front of the shop. Danny trotted along after him, waiting for more of an explanation. “But that’s because I had something special I wanted to give you, and I wanted to make sure it was perfect.” Dash approached the man at the counter, leaving Danny standing in confusion behind him. “Do you have the item?”

The man behind the counter nodded. He glanced at Danny, giving him a knowing smirk. Then he disappeared into the back room before re-emerging with a small black box in his hand. He held it out, and Dash took the box.

“I hope it's to your liking,” said the shop employee as he bowed his head slightly.

“If you did exactly what I asked you to do, then it should be,” Dash said before he turned and walked back to Danny. “An early Christmas present,” he explained, offering the box to the confused man.

Danny took the box and opened it slowly. Inside was a small gold band. Danny blinked as he removed it from the box. It took him a moment to realize that something had been engraved along the inside of the band.

“To my beloved phantom,” Danny read out loud. He glanced at Dash, who tried desperately to hide his blush of embarrassment. “It’s perfect,” Danny announced with a smile as he slipped on the ring. From past experiences, he knew better than to tease Dash about being a romantic sap from time to time.


	14. Winter Wonderland

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Alone together, sharing a private moment.  
> Characters: Danny x Sam

“It’s so peaceful here,” Sam said, sitting on the cottage’s porch. She wrapped the thick blanket tightly around her to ward off the cold, but Danny could see she was still shivering.

“I’m still surprised that Vlad actually had a good idea,” Danny said as he sat beside her. He handed Sam the second mug of hot chocolate that he just finished making.

Sam tentatively took a sip, careful not to burn her tongue. “I’m surprised you agreed to take the vacation and get out of Amity Park.”

“Well, we hadn’t gone on our honeymoon yet,” Danny said as worry crept to the forefront of his mind. He hated leaving Amity Park unprotected from ghosts. Vlad promised to keep everything under control while he was gone, but Danny didn’t know how much he could trust the elder half ghost. “And what better place is there to go to than a mountain cottage during winter where we have an excuse to stay indoors and cuddle the whole time?” Danny grinned as Sam tried to hide her blush.

Sam brought the mug to her lips again then she paused. “It’s starting to snow again.”

Danny turned to look as the small flakes drifted slowly to the already white covered ground. “Should we go back inside now?”

“Not yet,” Sam replied, placing a hand on Danny’s shoulder to stop him from getting up. “I want to watch the snow fall for a while.” She wrapped the blanket around Danny, and they huddled together to stay warm. “This place is like our own private winter wonderland.” Sam grinned as she rested her head on Danny’s shoulder.


	15. The Restaurant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Dash slips up on a date with Paulina, and Danny is there to witness it.  
> Characters: Danny, Dash, and Paulina

_Bluest Eyes_

“You have the most beautiful blue eyes I’ve ever seen,” Dash said as he gazed into Paulina’s eyes. He knew he was laying the romance on a bit too much, but his relationship was already on thin ice. He didn’t understand why he kept spacing out on their dates.

“You’re staring right at them, and you still can’t get the color of my eyes right!” Paulina threw a glass of water in Dash’s face, waking him from his stupor. “You’ve made one too many mistakes, Dash. It’s like you don’t even care about our relationship.” She stood, straightening her dress. “Just because you’re the star quarterback and I’m the head cheerleader, it doesn’t mean that we’re meant to be together. Clearly, you have other, more important, things on your mind.” She stormed out of the restaurant, leaving behind a shocked jock.

“Man, what’s wrong with me?” Dash mumbled, hanging his head. He knew Paulina’s eyes were green, but for some strange reason, he kept thinking about bright blue eyes.

“Sorry about the delay. There was a little accident in the kitchen. Have you two decided on what you would like to order?” the waiter rambled when he reached the table. He looked up and frowned at the single person sitting at the table. “Oh, sorry! I was told there was a couple.”

Dash stood and loomed over the shorter man. “Go ahead and laugh, Fentonio,” he growled, cracking his knuckles.

“I – I wasn’t,” Danny mumbled, eyes darting about the restaurant. People were starting to stare at them. “Come with me,” he whispered, walking through the restaurant toward the employees only room. Dash followed Danny into the back room only because he hoped to alleviate some of his frustration. “Here,” Danny said, pulling a clean shirt from one of the lockers.

“What?” Dash blinked at the outstretched hand.

“Well, your shirt is wet,” Danny explained. “I thought maybe you would like a clean shirt to wear.”

“You’re not going to laugh at me?” Stunned Dash took the shirt.

“Why would I?” Danny’s brow wrinkled in an expression of confusion. He saw Paulina throw the glass of water in Dash’s face, but he thought it best to let Dash believe he hadn’t.

Dash eyed Danny skeptically, but he shrugged as he pulled off his slightly wet shirt. Danny coughed and quickly turned away to face the door. Dash chuckled a little at the reaction as he put on the new shirt. Silently, he stepped behind Danny and poked him in the back. Danny squeaked, jumping about a foot in the air, and Dash laughed.

“Why would you do something like this for me?” Dash asked, buttoning up the shirt.

“Because I’m not a jerk like you.” Danny flinched in fear of being hit.

“You’re a pretty all right guy, Fenton,” Dash said as he laid a heavy hand on the other teen’s shoulder. Danny smiled weakly, trying to hide his wince when Dash tightened his hold on his shoulder. “But if you breathe one word about what happened tonight, I promise you will seriously regret it.” Dash held up a fist, and Danny gulped nervously. After grabbing his wet shirt, Dash left the restaurant, ignoring the murmurs from the other patrons.

_Wrongly Accused_

“Fenton, my office. Now,” ordered John, the manager of the restaurant where Danny worked. The other waiters stared at Danny, who gulped nervously as he walked into the manager’s office.

“You wanted to see me,” Danny said with a nervous shift of his weight.

“Fenton, I’m afraid I have to let you go,” John explained.

“W-What? Why?” Danny asked in panic and disbelief.

“Recently, it has been discovered that someone is stealing money from us.” John's expression was one of disappointment. “The other guys claim they saw you taking the money.”

“But that’s a lie!” Danny shouted. “I didn’t steal anything!”

“I have five guys that say you did. You can come back at the end of the week to pick up your final pay check.” John signed a few papers before glancing at Danny. “You can leave now.”

Danny stomped out of the office. A few of the waiters gave him a knowing smirk, and Danny glowered at them. He left the restaurant before he did something that he would regret. When he turned the corner at the end of the block, he bumped into another person.

“Fenton,” Dash growled, giving him a shove.

“Not now, Dash.” Danny sighed as he tried to walk past the jock. Dash grabbed Danny by the arm and thrust a bag at him. Frowning, Danny peeked inside the bag.

“It’s the shirt I borrowed,” Dash mumbled, trying to hide his blush.

Danny let out a frustrated growl. He threw the bag to the ground before he stomped on it in a furious rage.

Dash stared at the other teen, perplexed by his reaction. He grabbed Danny and gave him a violent shake. “What is wrong with you?” he demanded, oddly worried.

Danny glanced at Dash. He wasn’t sure he could trust the jock with the truth, but he needed to blow off some steam. “I got fired,” he replied as he dropped his gaze to the crumpled bag beneath his foot. “Someone was stealing from the restaurant, and some of the other waiters told the manager I did it. I’m not a thief! I worked really hard at that job. Why would I steal and ruin that? Now I have to go search for a new job.”

“They fired you because of a false accusation?” Dash turned and started storming off toward the restaurant.

“Wait, Dash!” Danny caught Dash by the arm. “What are you doing?”

“You have to prove to them that you’re innocent,” Dash shouted at Danny.

“With five people saying I did it? Yeah, I don’t there’s any hope of getting the manager to listen to me.” Danny folded his arms with a grumpy frown. “Why do you even care? I figured you would laugh at me for getting fired?”

“Consider this my repayment for you keeping your mouth shut about what happened with Paulina.” Dash shrugged. It angered him that those waiters used Danny as their scapegoat for their crime.

“Well, thanks for caring somewhat at least.” Danny scratched the back of his head. He dropped his arm with a sigh. “And now I have to go look for places that are hiring.” Danny waved before starting to walk off down the street.

“I,” Dash said, causing Danny to pause and turn around again. “I may know of a place that would hire you.”

Danny eyed Dash, suspicious of ulterior motives, but he could think of no reason why Dash might help him or why Dash would deceive him in this situation. He nodded, accepting Dash’s offer.


	16. Stolen Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: After a long night of drilling information into the young man, Vlad can't pass up a sudden temptation.  
> Character: Vlad x Danny

“All right, Daniel,” Vlad addressed the younger man as they sat on the couch in his study.

Papers covered the tabletop. Files on all of Vlad’s business partners as well as some potential partners were cluttered together in one giant mess. They spent the majority of the evening looking over them, mostly for Daniel's sake since he would be speaking at the business meeting early the next morning. Vlad expected the young man to know everything about each person attending the meeting.

“This is Mrs. Livingston,” Vlad said, picking up the paper with a photo of an elderly woman on it. “You should keep an eye on her because even though she looks like a nice old lady, she is more like a wolf in sheep’s clothing. If you are not careful, she might eat you alive at the meeting.” When he turned toward the young man, he saw Daniel fell asleep. The drool now staining the arm of his couch angered him, but he let it slide, realizing how tired he, himself, was. He let the paper drop on top of the pile as he stood. Lifting Daniel, he made a mental note to make sure Daniel ate more. The man was practically as light as he was at the age of fourteen. Then Vlad carried Daniel off to his room.

When he reached the bedroom, Vlad laid Daniel in the queen sized bed. Daniel removed his shoes earlier that evening, and they now sat forgotten behind the couch. Vlad pulled the covers Daniel's sleeping form. He stared at young raven haired man, amazed by how they overcame their hatred and learned to work and live together. He leaned down and gently pressed his lips to Daniel's lips. After stealing the kiss, Vlad quickly and quietly fled the room with his heart pounding faster than he ever remembered.


	17. Entertaining a Guest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Several years have passed since he's had anyone to entertain.  
> Characters: Danny and Dan

“It's so rare for me to entertain a guest,” Dan said as a smirk stretched across his face. He sipped from his wine glass while he watched his younger self struggle against the bonds holding him to the chair. However, any escape was impossible for him.

“I came here to fight you, not to be entertained,” Danny growled, finally giving up his struggle and settling on glaring instead.

“Six years have passed since our last meeting, and you are still so very impatient.” Dan set down his wine glass. “Are you still holding to that promise? Oh, but I suppose that is a silly question. You wouldn't be here now if you weren't still playing the hero.” He gave an amused chuckle as he stood and walked down the length of the table. Danny kept his mouth shut, but he began to growl the closer Dan approached him. “I was hoping I would get to see you again. I don't often get to reminisce with someone about the past.”

“Probably because you killed them all,” Danny muttered.

“Right.” Dan sat on the table before Danny. “I suppose there is that downside to killing. But now I can relive that joy I felt in taking the lives of your friends and family.” His smirk returned when Danny attempted to attack him. “Who should I start with first? You parents? Your sister? Tucker? Or maybe Sam? We have enough time for me to tell you all the gory details for each of them, since you will be here for a very long time.”

Danny tried to gather energy within the palm of his hand, but the restraints drained him of his powers. He cursed as he resigned himself to his fate as Dan’s prisoner.


	18. Loss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: When all else is lost, he still remains.  
> Characters: Dash x Danny

Dash stared across the table at Danny, whose eyes were red and puffy from crying all night. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there last night,” he said, breaking the silence.

“You couldn’t have known.” Danny's voice was hoarse. He raised the mug to his mouth and took a sip. The hot coffee burned his throat, but it felt oddly nice compared to how much his throat hurt.

“You should have called me. I would have come right over.”

“I couldn’t,” Danny mumbled, gazing into his coffee mug. “Sam didn’t want anyone else to see her in that condition.” He shook his head to rid his mind of Sam’s image right before she died. “I’ve lost both my friends. I’m all alone now.”

Dash slammed his hand down on the table, causing Danny to jump at the loud sound. “I know you’re grieving and it’s difficult dealing with the loss of someone you care about,” he said almost angrily. “I’ve lost friends and family too. But you’re not alone.” He reached across the table and covered Danny’s hands with his own. “You still have me.”

“I know,” Danny smiled weakly. It faded as he dropped his gaze again. “I keep losing the people closest to me. I’m afraid I’ll lose you too.”

“You won’t lose me.” Dash smiled.

Danny appreciated the attempt to comfort him, but the fear lingered in his mind. He stood and walked around the table. Dash gave him a confused look as Danny sat in his lap.

“Just hold me,” Danny mumbled, nuzzling his head against Dash’s neck. His grieving process wasn't completely over yet. But having Dash’s arms wrapped securely around him helped to ease the pain of loss, if only just a little.


	19. Shake Your Booty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: It didn't matter that he was a bad dancer. Dash still enjoyed the show.  
> Characters: Dash x Danny

“This is a lot harder than I thought it would be,” Danny said before he cursed at stepping too earlier on the up arrow.

“You’re doing a lot better than most of the beginners I’ve seen,” Dash said as he smirked at Danny. He received a scowl from the other man after Danny glanced over to see Dash hitting every arrow perfectly.

“And just how long have you been obsessed with Dance Dance Revolution?” Danny asked as he miscalculated when to hit the arrow again.

“I’m not obsessed with it.” The song came to an end, showing an A for Dash and an F for Danny.

“Oh yeah, I so rocked that,” Danny grumbled sarcastically, glaring at the words on the screen. “If you’re not obsessed with it, then how did you become so good at it?”

“I used it as a way to blow off steam,” Dash explained as he watched Danny scroll through the song list until he found one with a good beat. “It was my little escape from all the pressures of the real world. And it helped with my reflexes.” Dash grinned and leaned back against the wall behind them.

“Why did you stop?” Danny asked when he noticed the other man wasn’t jumping around beside him.

“Just taking a moment to actually look at what you’re doing. Then I can give you some pointers,” Dash lied, his gaze focused on something higher than Danny’s feet. _Perhaps inviting him over was a bad idea_ , Dash thought, forcing down the urge rising inside him.

“You can give them to me, but I don’t know if they’ll actually help.” Danny laughed. He stumbled over his feet, and his arms flailed as he tried to regain his balance. Dash sprung into action, catching Danny with an arm around his waist. Only the pounding beat of the song filled the room as Dash held Danny tightly to his body.

“I,” Dash said after a moment, pausing to clear his throat. “I told you wearing baggy pants wasn’t a smart idea.”

Danny’s body was tense, his eyes opened wide, and his brain failed to function. He was afraid to move, and the hand on his hip only made him more worried. “D-Dash, please tell me that’s not what I think it is.”

Dash panicked at being found out, his face growing pale as he wondered what to do in this situation. There was no way for him to lie and say that Danny was only imagining it. His cocky smirk soon returned as he tightened his hold on Danny. “That depends on what you think it is,” Dash whispered with a deep, husky voice into Danny’s ear. He rocked his hips slowly, feeling a surge of satisfaction when Danny gave a high-pitched “eep.”

“I – I think I should go now,” Danny stuttered. He tried to take a step forward, but Dash’s hold prevented all escape attempts that he tried.

“Are you really that horrified to discover that another man is attracted to you?” Dash asked as he trailed his free hand down Danny’s neck. He chuckled at how tense the man became with that simply action. He released Danny, who stumbled a few feet away from him. “I guess I shouldn’t keep you from your studies any longer,” Dash said as he watched Danny run from his apartment. When the door slammed shut, a frown replaced his smirk. “I blew it,” he mumbled with a sigh.

_Revisited_

Dash didn't really care to be there, but his best friend dragged him out of the dorm for a night of partying at a club near their college campus. Sometimes he hated when Kwan tried to cheer him up. His blue eyes drifted around the club and landed on Kwan already chatting it up with some random guy with longish dark hair. He shook his head at his friend, knowing Kwan would probably only date the loser for a week before they broke it off. For whatever reason that Dash could never understand, Kwan never had long lasting relationships with anyone, of either gender.

Dash made his way toward the bar as music blared through the club, which wasn't exactly his kind of thing. Dancing around could be fun on occasion, but clubs never seemed like the right place to meet someone to start a real relationship with, to him. In any case, he already had his attention on someone. He ran a hand through his blond locks, remembering how he completely blew it with that person.

_Way to go, dumbass_ , he thought with his gaze lowered. He hadn't heard even a word from Fenton since that day, and he doubted that Fenton would even respond to him if he attempted to contact him. They saw each other in the one class that they shared, but Fenton always made certain to sit as far away from Dash as possible. How long ago was that DDR fiasco? It felt longer than a month and a half.

A high pitched whistle broke through the music, and Dash snapped his head around at the sound of the wolf call. A stage was step up in the club for the times when they had a live band to provide the music. A group of rough looking men stood around the stage, cheering and whistling, and there on the stage with tight as hell leather pants and a mesh top that lifted to reveal more of his tantalizing pale flesh was Danny Fenton.

His jaw nearly dropped to the floor as he watched the raven haired man move on the stage, so very different from how he played DDR at Dash's dorm not even two months ago. When he noticed some big, muscular man climbing onto the stage, Dash jerked right out of his stunned state. Shoving his way toward the stage, he glared at the man trying to put his hands all over Fenton, who was trying to put distance between him and the man but was quickly running out of space on the stage. When he reached them, Dash hopped right onto the stage and grabbed the man from behind, maneuvering him toward the edge of the stage before giving him a hard shove. Dash hardly cared if the man got hurt when he fell, knocking some of the other men to the ground as well.

"Dash!" Fenton gaped in shock with perhaps a touch of fear.

Grabbing him around the waist, Dash lifted Fenton over one shoulder, ignoring protests as he carried the other man toward the exit of the club. Seriously, what the hell was going on here? Dash couldn't understand what Fenton, of all people, was doing at that club. And dancing on stage no less! When they reached the outside, Dash finally released Fenton, setting him down on his feet again.

"What the hell was that, Fenton?" Dash demanded, folding his arms. There were several things that were angering him with his inability to wrap his mind around this whole situation.

"What?" Fenton asked as his bright blue eyes looked away, clearly refusing to glance at the blond man before him. "I need money. You think I really make all that much working at the Nasty Burger?"

Dash blinked numbly at that response before he shook his head again. "No. I mean with the dancing!" He flailed his arms toward the club. "And-"

"Just because I can't step in time to some stupid arrows doesn't mean I can't dance." Fenton finally looked toward him, narrowing his eyes as he frowned.

Okay. Maybe Dash shouldn't have assumed that Fenton couldn't dance simply because he was pretty bad at DDR. "You do realize that's a gay club, right?"

"Really?" Fenton asked sarcastically. "The fact that everyone was dancing with the same sex really threw me off there."

Dash glowered at him. "Then why did you freak out last time?"

Fenton suddenly looked like the awkward fourteen year old from freshmen year in high school instead of the twenty-two year old man that he was when he hugged his arms around his body and glanced away. "I don't know." He shrugged, and it was clear in his body language that he felt uncomfortable. Something about that annoyed Dash. "I guess because it was you."

"What?" Dash asked numbly, his brain feeling like it just shut down because he couldn't puzzle out what Fenton meant by that statement.

Fenton sighed, lifting a hand to rake through his raven locks. "We've been getting along really well for a while now, maybe even being friends." He glanced hesitantly at Dash like he expected to be laughed at, or worse. "I didn't even think you were gay, and then all of sudden, it's like hello!" He waved his arms, his eyes opening real wide. "You're all into me, and I don't know. I didn't know if I wanted to have things progress that far between us. At least not yet."

"Oh." Dash had his fair share of rejections in the past, but this time it felt a lot worse than just a knife through the heart. It was like having a hand wrapped around his heart, slowly squeezing it until it finally burst. His shoulders sagged miserably. He never would have expected Fenton to be the one who could hurt him so badly when they first entered Casper High. Dash barely heard the movement, footsteps approaching him. He only came back to himself when he felt lips pressing against his own and hands on his hips, pulling him a touch closer to the other man's body. He missed the chance to kiss back before it broke, the body pulling away from him. Dash watched, too stunned to react, as Fenton walked away.


	20. The Hill

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: The hill wasn't their place anymore.  
> Characters: Danny and Cujo

He sat on the hill. Their hill. Or what used to be their hill. Now it was just another hill with no more special meaning. He drew his knees up to his chest, resting his chin on top of them as he stared out over the town. It was quiet that night with the sun just starting to set. Pinks and oranges bled through the sky as night came, and soon the stars would be out, twinkling high above him. The year was coming to a close, and the air held a crisp chill.

A wet nose pressed against his side, and Danny jerked at the sudden presence. He didn't even notice his ghost sense go off or the usual shiver that would run through him when he was around another ghost. His blue eyes dropped to the little green dog that barked happily, wagging its tail when Danny turned his attention onto him.

"Out of the Ghost Zone again, are you, Cujo?" Danny chuckled as he scratched behind the dog's ears, but there was no humor in his laugh. He didn't feel much like laughing at the moment. Everything felt gloomy, and his chest kept squeezing painfully. He wanted to make that feeling go away, but nothing he tried seemed to work.

Cujo wiggled his way into Danny's lap, squirming until the half ghost was forced to lower his legs so that the dog could comfortably rest over his lap. Rolling his eyes, Danny leaned back against the tree and lazily stroked his hand over the dog's back. The tail remained a flurry of motion, whipping back and forth and stirring up a tiny breeze from the action.

"I-" Danny caught himself, knowing making any sort of wish out loud could prove to be a bad idea if a certain ghost was lurking around in the area. "It must be nice being a dog sometimes. You don't have any worries at all, do you? You're happy just finding someone to scratch your back." He rubbed his fingers across the dog's spine, and Cujo gave a happy bark.

A smile tugged at his face as he stared down at the ghost dog. Maybe he just needed to stop feeling sorry for himself. "Well, Cujo," Danny lifted the dog up so that they were face to face. "Feel like a game of fetch?" He grinned as Cujo licked his cheek. "I'll take that as a yes." Setting Cujo down, Danny stood up, transforming into Phantom. A dense ball of ectoplasm formed in his hand, and he threw it, watching as the dog darted off to catch it.


	21. Striking a Deal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Kwan is mesmerized by a statue he found at the bottom of the sea and seeks the help of a Deep One to find the human the statue was modeled after.  
> Characters: Kwan and Lancer

Kwan glanced over his shoulder again, making sure no one had followed after him. He knew this was a bad idea, knew there would be a heavy price to pay for what he wanted, but he had to do this. His father couldn’t control his life forever.

He swam into the dark cave. Seaweed reached out toward her, attempting to wrap around him and keep him. Kwan struggled his way through the tunnel as he tore his way through the seaweed. _Of course he would live in such a troublesome place_ , Kwan thought in annoyance when he was finally free of the seaweed cave. When he looked up, he yelped in surprise and jerked back away from the large fish face before him.

“I’ve been essspecting you,” he said, lips stretching wide into a grin.

Kwan swallowed hard as he swam forward a few inches. He tried to put on a brave face, but meeting the Deep One made him beyond nervous. It was forbidden to have any contact with a Deep One, but despite the dangers, he knew this was his only option. “I wish to make a deal with you,” he said with only the mildest hint of a waver in his voice.

“That isss what all who come here sssay.” He swam around Kwan before stopping in front him again. He took the merman's face in his webbed claws as his tail wrapped around his. “What isss it you want?”

“I – I want legs,” he answered with a small hesitation. “I want to be able to walk on land like the two legged ones.”

“Why would you want legsss or walk on land?” The Deep One drew Kwan closer. A webbed hand slid down his arm as he stared into his aqua colored eyes. “Becaussse of that ssstatue, hm?” He grinned at the merman's bewilderment. “I sssaw it. I sssaw your father dessstroy it.”

“I need to find him!” he exclaimed in urgency. “I can’t search for him like this. That’s why I need legs to walk on land with.”

“You think you love him, hm?” The Deep One smirked more. He yanked the merman close and dragged him deeper into the cave. “I can help you.” He stopped in a larger room filled with shelves made of stone that held various bottles of odd looking liquids. “For a price,” he added, turning a smirk on the merman.

“What’s the price?” Kwan asked nervously. He didn’t like the feel of the Deep One’s tail wrapping around his tail in an almost perverse manner.

“Three weeksss,” explained the Deep One. “I’ll give you three weeksss to find, ssseduce, and make thisss human fall in love with you. But if you fail, you’ll return here and become my apprentice.”

“Your… apprentice?” Kwan swallowed, quite sure he didn’t like the sound of that.

The Deep One leaned in, nuzzling against him neck as he sniffed the merman's scent. “Yesss, my apprentice,” he answered, placing webbed claws on the merman's hips where flesh turned to scale. “There isss sssuch power in you. Power your _father_ refusssesss to believe esssissstsss.” A long tongue flicked out to lick up his neck. “If you fail to find your love or your love isss falssse, you will be mine.”

Kwan squirmed in the Deep One’s hold. He didn’t like the deal offered to him. Making deals with a Deep One was forbidden. Becoming a Deep One’s apprentice would surely get him exiled from the kingdom. He would never see his father or his best friend again. Swallowing, he came to a realization and relaxed in the Deep One’s grasp. If he wished to find the one that matched the stone statue, he had no choice but to accept the deal. Without the Deep One’s power, it was impossible for him to gain legs and walk among the land dwellers.

“I – I accept the deal,” Kwan said, voice shaking.

“Essscellent,” the Deep One hissed in the merman's ear before he slithered up toward the roof of the room. When he returned several moments later, he held two necklaces in his claws. One was an amethyst crystal on a thin silver chain. “Thisss one you wear.” He offered it over to Kwan, who stared at it.

Reaching out, Kwan wrapped his hand around the crystal. Hesitantly, he wrapped the chain around his neck and latching the two ends of the chain together. He then turned it around so that the amethyst rested just below his collar bone. “What’s this for?” he asked, looking up at the Deep One.

“Part of the ssspell,” he answered, saying no more on that. He lifted the other necklace – a spiral shell on a leather string - and held it before Kwan’s face. “Blow on it.”

Kwan blinked, not understanding how this would give him legs. But knowing little of magic, he trusted the Deep One. Taking a deep breath, he blew, bubbles circling around the shell. When it started to glow, Kwan slapped a hand to his throat. It felt like something had been torn out of him. He gasped and looked up at the Deep One who smirked back him.

“Now for the real magic,” the Deep One said, pocketing the shell necklace someplace where Kwan couldn’t see. He backed up a few feet and began chanting something, but Kwan couldn’t understand it with all of the Deep One’s hissing and slurred words. At the end of his chant, the words boomed off the walls of the room. Then something slammed into Kwan. He gasped and curled up as pain and heat coursed through his body. Things shifted, and his tail broke in two to form legs.

The final change was the gills upon his neck closing. He gasped again, water filling his mouth. The Deep One acted quickly, snatching up the former merman and dragging the now human up through a hole in the dome of the cave’s room. He swam quickly up to the surface of the sea. When they broke through, Kwan coughed and gasped for air.

“Remember,” said the Deep One once Kwan was breathing normally again. “You have three weeksss to find thisss love of yoursss.” He sank back into the water and swam off, leaving Kwan to figure out how his new body worked all on his own.


	22. Beyond These Walls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Danny dreams of stars and a life beyond the walls.  
> Characters: Danny and Vlad

Danny sat on the window sill with a book in his lap as he gazed out over the perfectly maintained gardens surrounding the castle. They were lovely to stare at with the topiaries sculpted like animals and hedges winding around like a maze and the colorful dots of flowers sprinkled around the area. But no smile came to his face as he took in their beauty. He never got to go out there and lose his way among the hedges or breathe in the fragrance of the flowers. Sure. His father brought fresh roses and lilies and a variety of other flowers from the gardens to place in vases about his rooms.

But it wasn't the same. He was tired of being locked away, never getting to see the outside world for himself. He learned of amazing things within the books he read, and his father brought in more whenever Danny exhausted his current selections. His favorites were the books talking about the stars. Every night he stared up at them, trying to pick out constellations. His dreams were filled with the thought of being able to one day fly among them.

But it was strictly forbidden for him to leave the castle. Danny frowned, dropping his gaze back to his book that showed an up close image of the moon on the front cover. It would be amazing to walk on it one day. His fingers brushed over the cover, tracing the craters on the moon.

Would he never get to step outside this castle? He was aware of the dangers to his life. Hunters existed that wanted to steal him away from his father, to dissect him because he wasn't quite human. His hands squeezed around the sides of the book. He couldn't help the way he was born, not breathing, almost half dead. It was a miracle that he survived at all. His mother wasn't so lucky, passing away before she ever got the chance to hold him in her arms. That fact always made him feel guilty, like he got to live because she died.

The jiggle of the doorknob tore Danny out of his reverie. With a sigh, he set the book aside on the table nearest the window. Then he got up and made his way across the room, picking his way carefully, but as always, something tripped him up and he fell flat on his face. He huffed tiredly, pushing himself to his knees as the door opened.

"Daniel," his father greeted, staring down at him with curious dark blue eyes. "What are you doing?"

Danny turned his head away, not wanting to admit to the embarrassing fact of tripping over his own hair. "You wanted me to clean up. I was checking under the bed." He bent over, pressing his head to the floor as he glanced under the four poster bed. There wasn't anything to find beneath it since he finished cleaning everything up hours ago.

"Come over here, Daniel," his father called.

Danny sat up straight as he glanced toward his father who walked over to the table in his room. Hopping to his feet, he joined his father at the table, nearly tripping again over the long length of raven hair that seemed to drape over everything surface within the room. Sometimes, he really just wanted to cut all of it off and save himself the trouble of dealing with it all. Brushing out all the knots and washing it was far too troublesome. But his father made sure to keep all sharp instruments out of his room, and out of his reach if brought into the room. He frowned at that fact as he swiped at a lock of hair that fell before his face and into his eyes. Seriously troublesome.

"A cake?" Danny asked curiously, watching as his father lit each individual candle upon the white frosted cake.

"Have you forgotten that it's your birthday?" Amusement flitted through the man's voice.

Blue eyes sparkled widely before Danny glanced away, slightly ashamed at having forgotten that it was, indeed, his birthday. His mind got distracted while staring out over the garden. Taking a deep breath, he pondered over a wish before he blew out the breath hard, making sure to extinguish each little flame.

"Was there any wish that I might be able to make come true?" his father asked as he cut slices from the cake, placing a slice on each of the two plates.

Danny frowned inwardly at the question. His greatest wish would be to see the stars, but knowing how impossible that would be, he settled for simply asking for the chance to step outside the walls the caged him. He knew that wasn't something his father would want to hear though.

"I'm just happy to spend my birthday with you." Danny smiled up at his father, who returned it as he reached out and threaded his fingers through his son's raven hair.


	23. Just in Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Some of the best presents cut it close to being late.  
> Characters: Danny x Sam

Sam sighed as she stared at the slowly melting wax of the candles in the center of the table. Her party ended hours ago, and her friends all left. She sat alone in the dark room with only the candles to light it. After she ran her finger along the side of the cake, she brought the finger to her mouth and licked the icing from it. It was vanilla icing that she mixed it with red and blue food dyes to make it purple. Most of the cake was already eaten by her guests, but she managed to save some.

Sam glanced at the clock, ticking loudly, and she sighed again when she noticed the time. In half an hour, a new day would start, and it would no longer be her birthday.

“Where are you?” Sam mumbled, tapping her fingers on the table. As the time passed, her eyelids grew heavy, and she rested her head upon her arms.

When the room grew cold, Sam shivered. Her eyes opened, and a smile spread across her face as the icy hand caressed her cheek. She sat up straight, glancing at the clock as the white haired ghost switched to his human form.

“You were almost late, Danny,” Sam said, trying to look angry with the man.

“A ghost popped up out of nowhere,” Danny explained as he sat in the chair next to Sam at the table. “That’s not a very good excuse, but I did everything I could to make sure I made it here before it was too late.”

“I’m glad you made it.” Sam smiled as she pulled the leftover cake toward them. She paused when she caught sight of Danny’s hand placing a small box on the table in front of her. After blinking at him, she took the small box and lifted the lid. Nestled inside she found a silver band with a small amethyst gem set in it. She turned back to Danny, who climbed off his seat and knelt on one knee on the floor.

“Sam, will you marry me?” Danny asked with a serious expression on his face.

Sam glanced between the ring and Danny, shocked by the suddenness of the proposal. Then she threw her arms around Danny, almost knocking the man off balance.

“Yes!” Sam exclaimed with a wide smile. “I thought you would never ask.”

“I’m sorry I made you wait so long.” Danny held her in a warm embrace.

“I didn’t mind the waiting.” Sam stared into Danny’s eyes before both of them leaned forward, their lips meeting in a tender kiss.


	24. Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Halloween should be a time to dress up and have fun. Right?  
> Characters: Danny x Dash

When his sister said she had a great idea for his Halloween costume that year, a now sixteen year old Danny didn't think much of it. His body developed some muscle since he became half ghost and started fighting to protect Amity Park from the ghosts that attacked it, but he was still in that awkward phase where he still looked fairly lanky. Halloween came, and Jazz presented him with what she thought would be the perfect costume for him. Danny protested immediately at the sight of thing, but somehow Jazz wrangled him into the blasted thing.

Danny sighed inwardly, tugging the red hood farther down to hide his face, which was no doubt sporting a terribly bright blush of humiliation. What was Jazz thinking with this costume? The moment his sister shoved him into the house where the Halloween party was being held, Danny felt like all eyes were on him, and that sense of having walked into the party completely naked came over him.

Blue eyes drifted around the room. Jazz was off chatting with some guy with a spiked Mohawk, and Danny frowned at that, hoping he wouldn't have to keep an eye on her like with Johnny. But from the bored expression on the man's face, he didn't think the man was all that interested in Jazz. Paulina was over by the punch bowl with Star, who nodded her head and grinned to everything the Hispanic woman was saying. Valerie was in a corner with Kwan, holding an arm wrestling contest which seemed to be at a stalemate. Tucker and Sam seemed to be laughing over something, and Danny prayed it wasn't about his costume, though it wouldn't surprise him if that was their source of amusement.

"Might want to watch out, Little Red," someone whispered, standing at his back, and Danny tensed at the familiar voice. "The Big Bad Wolf might decide to take a bite out of you?"

Danny gulped nervously, his eyes darting back to Paulina, whose costume also featured a red hooded cape. Dash couldn't possibly have confused them, right? Danny was maybe only a fraction of an inch shorter than Dash at that point, which was definitely taller than Paulina. And Sam, who wasn't pleased at being the shortest of the trio now. Dash couldn't be that stupid to think that he was hitting on Paulina. Danny frowned at the realization that Dash probably had something embarrassing planned for his favorite target of bullying.

A slow grin slid across his face as an idea crept into his mind. Halloween was a time for fun, right? Why shouldn't he take advantage of that. Danny turned around, not surprised to see that Dash was dressed in some wolf costume with furry ears upon his head and the furry paw gloves and hairy pants, leaving his bare chest exposed. He could only guess that the jock planned the costume to go with Paulina's Little Red Riding Hood, with the added benefit of showing off his hard muscles to the other women that would be attending the Halloween party, surprisingly opened to everyone at school.

"Maybe it's the Big Bad Wolf that should watch out," Danny said, almost purring as he stepped in far too closely to Dash, who blinked in surprise and obviously too stunned to react to this sudden turn of events. The jock backed up and Danny followed until he had Dash trapped between his body and the wall. "Little Red might decide to bite back." He snapped his teeth shut with a soft clink, just barely nipping at Dash's nose.

Grinning widely at the look on Dash's face, Danny pushed away from the other man. He walked off, halfway tempted to glance over his shoulder and see if Dash was watching him leave, wondering if the jock might be staring at his ass and the way the short skirt of his dress fluttered as he walked the way he did with the women that passed him. But the thought was far too embarrassing, and Danny's face burned brighter than ever as he joined his friends, who gave him confused looks when he reached them.


	25. Snow Colored Lens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Always the one behind the lens, Danny didn't think the person he always had his eye on would notice him in return.  
> Characters: Phantom x Fenton

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yup! This is the short story that kicked off the full length story.

Danny hugged his arms around his body, blue eyes cautiously darting around the rundown section of town. Normally, he wouldn't dare to walk through this part of town, but he was taking the long way home, not wanting to risk passing by the crowd of popular teenagers and catching Dash's eye. The blond jock never needed a real reason to come after him and try to beat him up to within an inch of his life. Danny sighed at that fact. He tried to melt into shadows, hide within the crowd at school, but somehow, Dash always caught sight of him. As long as he was quick enough, Danny could escape him, but sometimes, when the rest of the football team joined in, he was doomed to suffer a terrible pounding. He rubbed at his side, wincing at the lingering bruise that still hadn't disappeared from the last time Dash decided to use him as a punching bag.

A noise caught his ear. Danny jogged down the street, skidding around the corner at the sounds of fighting. His side screamed at him for the burst of speed, but he ignored it when his gaze found the source of the noise. His eyes widened at the sight of the ghosts fighting each other.

"I am the Box Ghost!" the blue skinned ghost shouted with his arms raised over his head. Cardboard boxes and crates on the street rose into the air then flew at the second ghost.

"You really don't have to shout that every time," said the other ghost, looking bored by his opponent. His body turned transparent as the boxes and crates passed right through him.

Danny fumbled with his bag, digging around inside it until he retrieved his camera. Adjusting the lens, Danny lifted the camera to his eye, focusing it on the white haired ghost fighting against the Box Ghost, almost like he was playing with the other ghost. _Click! Click! Click!_ Danny snapped as many pictures as possible, hoping they would turn out all right with the way the ghosts kept moving about so quickly. Before he knew it, his camera lowered as he paid more attention to watching the white haired ghost than actually capturing the fight on film. The ghost with glowing green eyes wasn't exactly some graceful swan flying through the sky. Danny winced when the ghost got thrown into the wall, through it actually, before shoot back out to fire a green ball of ectoplasm at the Box Ghost.

The fight ended quickly after that, the ghost quickly sucking the Box Ghost into a Thermos like object. With a sigh, the ghost lowered himself to the ground, white booted feet touching down as he tucked the Thermos behind him. His glowing green eyes glanced Danny's way, and the raven haired man almost squeaked out loud at being spotted. Danny glanced around, but there really wasn't anywhere to hide, or much point since the ghost already saw him. And was coming his way. Danny gulped nervously, holding the camera before him like some kind of shield.

"You turned up again," the ghost said, pausing before the man as a cocky grin slipped onto his face.

Danny glanced away with an awkward flutter inside him. "W-What do you mean again?" He could feel the blush rising to his cheeks at the nearness of the ghost. It seemed rather ridiculous to get this flustered over a ghost.

"You didn't think I wouldn't notice when you keep popping up every time I have a fight somewhere." The ghost poked at the camera in Danny's hands. "Always with that camera." His grin stretched a little wider. "Anything you want to confess?"

Danny couldn't even think of how to respond for a moment. Of course, he did have thoughts about the ghost beyond simply being a subject for his photography. But he certainly couldn't confess something like that to him! His face was darkening with a blush at the very idea of saying anything about those feelings. He managed to swallow the lump in his throat, and he thought for the briefest moment that the green eyes followed the bob of his Adam's apple.

"They," Danny winced at the crack in his voice, "pay good money at the paper if you bring in good pictures to use for stories. If they like some of the shots I've taken, I might be able to earn up enough money for a new character.

The ghost blinked, the smirk faltering. "Oh," there was almost disappointment in his voice, "and here I thought you just wanted pictures of me for yourself."

Danny didn't think his face could get any redder, almost certain that even his ears were red. "I do keep some," he admitted and immediately bowed his head, pressing his forehead against the camera. What an idiot he was saying something like that! And right to his hero, and ridiculously stupid crush, Phantom too!

"Oh, do you now?"

At the question, Danny lifted his head to blink at the curiosity in the ghost's voice. It didn't even register right away in his mind, too stunned by the feel of cool lips against his own. The camera was pressed between their bodies as Phantom's white gloved fingers threaded through raven locks, tilting Danny's face up a bit more. When the ghost pulled away, Danny couldn't even find his voice to respond to the kiss.

"I hope to you see again soon, my cute little photographer." With the cocky smirk back in place, Phantom leaped into the air and flew off into the night.

Danny stared after him, his fingers brushing over his lips. Did Phantom really just kiss him, stealing his very first kiss?


	26. In Enemy Hands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: An accident forces Danny to rely on an enemy for help.  
> Characters: Vlad and Danny

Danny folded his arms, grumpily tapping his foot as he sat on the step of the house. He glared at the face of the man before him, irritation washing through him. "Are you even trying?" he demanded through clenched teeth as he drummed the fingers of one hand on his bicep.

Two weeks already passed since the incident, and Vlad still had no solution to his little problem. Danny ground his teeth painfully. A little mishap with one of his father's inventions left him about the size of the other half ghost's hand. His powers were diminished, leaving his raven hair with a streak of white down the middle. His clothing looked mostly like what he wore in human form except his shirt remained black with a white collar and hem on the sleeves. His DP logo stayed emblazoned on his shirt. His right eye was bright blue, but he could feel his left eye shifted to glowing green. Unfortunately, the invention that left him in this condition was broken, a shattered mess of parts too damaged to be salvaged.

"Oh, I'm trying very hard, little badger." Vlad smirked at the younger half ghost sitting upon the porch of a doll house.

It surprised Danny when Vlad first brought him to the castle that the man even had a doll house, but it apparently belonged to Vlad's mother. Danny could still remember that fond look on Vlad's face when he gazed upon the doll house with hints of sorrow and regret in his eyes. It made Danny wonder if Vlad planned on passing it down to his daughter, when he thought he had the chance of having children. Would Vlad have given it to Danielle if he could ever see her more like a daughter than a clone to be used or melted down to better his chances of succeeding with his "perfect" clone?

Danny frowned as the thought of clones passed through his mind. Vlad hadn't mentioned anything about clones in a long time now. Staring up at the man, Danny remembered one of his clones was a tiny little thing, and a shudder ran down his spine. The whole thing about clones didn't settle well with him, and most of them dissolved into a puddle of ectoplasm. All excepted Danielle, who thankfully managed to escape Vlad's clutches.

"I can't remember how you ever talked me into coming back with you," Danny grumbled, frustrated with his inability to do anything to fix what happened to him.

"How would you explain any of this to you parents?" Vlad turned his attention back to his work on an invention that would hopefully reverse the shrinking effect. He brought the doll house down to his laboratory so that Danny could keep an eye on his work.

Sighing, Danny dropped his head into his hands as he stared at the back of Vlad's head. It really wasn't all that bad living with Vlad. Not as bad as he imagined that first day when they arrived at the castle. He was seeing a different side of Vlad the more he spent time with the man. Their conversation weren't as antagonistic as usual. His mouth curved downward. Would they going back to fighting the moment he was back to normal? Danny found he was hoping that they could keep this sort of civil relationship they had over the past two weeks. It was... nice. Danny dropped his gaze. Why couldn't Vlad always be like this? Why did they have to keep fighting? Sighing, he folded his arms over his knees and dropped his forehead onto them.


	27. In the Library

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: They meet in the library.  
> Characters: Wulf x Ghost Writer

Ghost Writer glanced up from his latest writing to see a familiar figure that entered his library. It wasn't unusual for the wolf ghost to make an appearance from time to time. It started with occasional visits shortly after they broke free from Walker's prison. Then the visits became more frequent as time went by, and Wulf enjoyed browsing through all the various books within the library, slowly picking up on the English language so that he could communicate more easily with non Esperanto speakers. Ghost Writer felt a little irked in knowing the reason for that was because Wulf wished to be able to speak with Danny Phantom whenever they teamed up to fight. He was still a little bitter over the half ghost destroying his Christmas story and landing him in Walker's prison, but his time with Wulf seemed to be dulling that anger.

"What kind of book are you looking for this time?" Ghost Writer questioned as he stepped away from his keyboard, but he paused in his walking when the wolf shook his head. Ghost Writer frowned, noting the arms of Wulf held behind his back. His brow furrowed in confusion, but curiosity was slowly winning its way through his mind. "What did you come here for then?"

It wasn't like he didn't enjoy Wulf's company. They often had nice little chats whenever Wulf asked about certain books, and Ghost Writer was thrilled to have someone to chatter with over his love of books.

Wulf pulled his arms from behind his back and held something out toward the writer. Blinking bright green eyes, Ghost Writer stared at the scarf knitted in stripes of green and black presented to him. He was too stunned at first to understand the meaning of what the wolf ghost was trying get across to him with the silent action.

"Is that for me?"

A nod.

"You got me a scarf?"

A shake of the head. Ghost Writer pondered over that before an idea came to him.

"You _made_ me a scarf?" he questioned with a lift of one eyebrow.

Wulf nodded again with a pleased look in his eyes.

"I never knew you could knit."

"Plasmius taught me."

Ghost Writer almost laughed until he realized Wulf was quite serious with that statement. "Plasmius? He taught you to knit?"

Wulf nodded. "We meet up every Sunday for a crafts group."

Ghost Writer could only gape at the other ghost. The whole concept that Plasmius held a crafts group weekly was mindboggling to him. His mouth worked up and down, but he couldn't think of anything to say in response to that new knowledge.

"But," Wulf's expression fell, clawed fingers closing around the scarf, "if you don't want it-"

"No!" Ghost Writer cried out as he closed the distance between them. He grabbed hold of the scarf, a flush coming to his cheeks as he stared up at the wolf. "I mean-" He dropped his gaze, now feeling rather silly for jumping like that. "Thank you. It's a very thoughtful gift."

Wulf easily wrapped the scarf about the writer's neck and tugged him closer as he bent his head down, nudging his nose against the other ghost's cheek. Blushing growing darker, Ghost Writer hugged the wolf.


	28. Head Troubles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: When an accident happens during a fight with a ghost, Valerie decides to take Danny to an unlikely individual to help them.  
> Characters: Danny, Vlad, Valerie, and Danielle

Valerie gave the man standing before her a very annoyed and not amused glare as she folded her arms and waited for him to stop looking like he was, very out of characterly, about to burst an internal organ by stifling his laughter. "Are you done yet?" she demanded, tapping an impatient foot.

"My apologies," Vlad said, coughing into a hand as he tried to regain his composure.

"I told you this was a bad idea," Danielle said, glowering darkly at the man, and for good reason she disliked the man that had created her and tried to melt her down into ectoplasmic goo to study.

Valerie felt bad about forcing the half ghost girl to face the man again, but she couldn't think of a better choice for their current... problem. Her gaze drifted to her left where Danny stood very still as he remained in his Phantom form. She had to tear her eyes away from him, unable to stare at him for more than a moment at a time. She had let go of her anger toward him, with the help of Danielle, who made her work through her issues and come to realize Danny wasn't her enemy. It didn't take her long to piece together that Danny Fenton was Danny Phantom. That revelation, though obvious to her now, was absolutely shocking, and for days afterward, she felt a bit numb to the realization of Phantom's true identity.

"No, I believe you've made the right decision in this case," Vlad corrected, the amusement dying from his expression as he turned a grave look onto Danny. "Despite our poor relationship in the past, this is one case I certainly can't ignore. How did this happen?"

"Well," Valerie started with a hesitant glance toward Danny, "we tracked down a ghost causing trouble, and in the middle of the fight, the ghost just," she made a swinging motion like she was wielding a weapon that sliced the through air, "chopped it right off."

"I see," Vlad murmured as he stepped around Danny's body to examine the stump of a neck from all angles. A bright green glow came off the spot where Danny's head used to be attached to his body, but the head was now completely absent. That was the fact that had them most worried because they currently had no idea where Danny's head was.

"You do know how to fix this, don't you?" Danielle demanded, grinding her teeth in frustration.

"Um, what happens if he, you know, goes back to human while he's like this?" Valerie felt sick at the very thought. "Will he die? I mean, his head is completely gone! I've been going on the assumption that being in ghost form is the only reason his body is still functioning." When she looked closely, she could see Danny's chest rising and falling with each breath.

"If it was a normal weapon, I would agree with that assumption." Vlad tentatively ran a finger of the headless neck.

That action produced a reaction out of Danny's body, which jerked away from him and spun on the balls of his feet. Danny's hand glowed green and fired off an energy ball, but Vlad was quick to put up a pink shield to protect himself from the attack. Danny remained tensed and alert. When no one touched him or even came close to approaching him, his body relaxed, and he returned to standing still with his arms folded.

"Well, at least he's on guard for threats." Vlad turned his attention back to the two women in his office. "If it was a normal weapon, there would be ectoplasm oozing from the wound and congealing to try to seal it. But there's none of that. There's also the fact that his head seems to have vanished."

"Yeah," Danielle agreed with a frown. "We looked around, but his head wasn't anywhere."

"Because the weapon had dimensional properties." Vlad placed a hand to his chin, staring thoughtfully at Danny. "It's like Fright Knight's sword and doesn't cause physical injuries when passing through the body."

"So Danny's head is in some nightmare world?" Valerie shouted in a panic.

"Quite possibly. Or it could simply be in any other dimension. It could even be in the Ghost Zone." Vlad still appeared worried about Danny's current condition. "Who was it that did this?"

"Well, we didn't exactly get a name." Valerie worried her lower lip. "But he had a big axe."

"And he kind of had that medieval executioner look to him," Danielle added. "But you can reverse this, right?"

"We'll need to track this ghost down," Vlad explained. "His axe will be the only thing that can reverse it. Trying anything else could cause Daniel's situation to worsen. Take me to where you last saw this ghost."

Valerie shared a look with Danielle, who wasn't thrilled about trusting Vlad. But what other choice did they have? "All right," she agreed.


	29. Dive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: As a teacher, Vlad spends most of his days, attempting, to teach students about science. Then one day, something - or someone, actually - catches his eye.  
> Characters: Vlad x Danny

A tired sigh passed his slightly parted lips as he crossed the campus, taking a short cut that he had, sadly, only discovered last week when he needed to get somewhere in a hurry but had a crowded hall of students to get through first. It went a lot faster to cut through the pool instead of going the long, winding way through halls because of classrooms cutting off a straight route to where he needed to go. That was a great relief when he was carrying a heavy box full of laboratory supplies for doing experiments in class.

Until last week, Vlad wasn't even aware that the school had a pool, or even that they had a swim team. The only sport that he had paid any attention to was football because he was a fan of the Green Bay Packers and watched their games religiously. He paid some attention to the Casper High Ravens football team, only to show school spirit, but beyond that, none of the other sports were highly talked about around him. The football team was what brought in the fans and, in turn, money for the school.

Vlad rolled his head, feeling an ache in his shoulders from having to carry the box of supplies. He was exhausted from another day of dealing with students, a good number of them asking him to repeat his lecture because they didn't understand something, or basically everything. He looked forward to going home and spending the rest of his night with his feet up, maybe with a nice glass of wine, as he graded papers and tests.

When a noise caught his attention, Vlad turned his head toward the sound. He paused before he could reach the other exit of the pool and stared at the young man standing on the block in front of where Vlad stood. How had he missed that the man was even there? Vlad wondered, but he could only guess that he must have been too much inside his head to pay attention to his surroundings. The man didn't seem to notice his presence any more than Vlad had his. He was tall with a swimmer's build and pale flesh. All he wore was a black swim pants that reached to just above the knees and hugged his thighs like a second skin.

Vlad couldn't remove his eyes from the man as he reached up to hide his raven hair beneath a black swim cap that had a white streak down the center of it. He knew he shouldn't be watching, but he found himself curious. No one else was present at the pool but them. Obviously, there was no swim team practice happening at that time. So why was the man here alone? He was obviously a student, though Vlad didn't recognize him, or at least the backside of him. Perhaps because he never had reason to see his students half dressed. But there were plenty of other science teachers. If the young man was taking science at all this semester, he could easily be in any of the other classes.

The man fixed his goggles and drew back the strap a few times before releasing it to let the strap snap against the back of his head. Then he bent down, placing his hands onto the block as he prepared to dive. Vlad turned his gaze away, flustered and red in the face from the sight of the man's rear end sticking up in the air like that. The few seconds it took the man to move again felt like an eternal struggle for Vlad, who kept making glancing peeks at the man while trying not to. Then the man jumped, pushing off the block with his arms stretched before him.

Vlad was mesmerized, gazing with wondrous blue eyes as the man beautifully dove into the water. How could such an action be as beautiful as that? He didn't know much about swimming, in terms of it being a sport, but he could only call the man's form perfect. Stumbling forward, he came to the edge of the pool as the man broke the surface of the water again. His strokes looked so smooth, slicing through the water like he was always meant to be there, in his element. Vlad watched with his mouth agape as the man reached the other end of the pool, flipped around under water, and pushed away from the wall. He remained under water for a few short moments before surfacing again.

He realized it a moment too late. He should leave the pool before the man realized that anyone was watching him. Vlad managed a few steps back, unable to stop watching the man's elegant strokes. His hand slapped the wall, and his head broke fully out of the water. After yanking off he the cap and goggle, he shook out his hair, flipping around the damp strands of raven hair. When the bright blue eyes landed on him, Vlad felt a surge of panic race through him. He really shouldn't be in there! The box slipped from his hold and hit the hard tiled floor with a crash of breaking glass.

The man blinked at him before folding his arms on the edge of the pool and leaning forward. "You know," he said in a voice that washed over Vlad like the water that surrounded the man, "if you break enough of those, they'll ban you from handling all fragile school property."

Vlad couldn't think of a response, too distracted watching the drips of water clinging the man's hair, his lashes, his nose, running over his lips. He swallowed thickly as those lips stretched crookedly into a cocky smirk. He was in trouble.


	30. Busted and Bruised

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: When he received an injury during a game, Dash never expected Danny to stand up for him.  
> Characters: Dash and Danny

He returned to school on Monday after the doctor finished patching up his knee. He always put on that "better than you" mask when he was at school. After all, he was pretty much the king of the school as the star quarterback for their football team. He walked the halls with his head held high and looked down on the unpopular, bullying them along with the rest of his team mates. But that was before the accident. When he entered the high school next, a trickle of trepidation spilled down his spine, fearing the reaction of his circle of friends to the damage done to his knee.

A hush fell through the hall as Dash made his way to his locker, the click-clack of the crutches echoing loudly in the silence. He refused to bow his head like some coward, keeping it raised and ignoring the looks that followed him to his locker. None of the other students at Casper High saw him since the game on Friday, and no one knew the extent of damage to his knee after he was taken away to the hospital before the game ended.

"Nice going, Baxter," Calvin Williams said with a sneer as he leaned against the lockers next to Dash. "We're probably going to lose the championship now because you have to be a wimp."

Dash rolled his eyes as he ignored the other jock, though he was thankful that it was only Calvin coming to harass him. Trying to get his things out of his locker was a struggle with the crutches under each arm. As soon as Dash had the books he needed for class, Calvin smacked them out of his hands, each book thumping as they hit the ground. The other students around them all paused to see what was happening between the jocks.

"You're not exactly Mr. Big Man on campus anymore, are you?" The smirk that cut across Calvin's face made Dash want to punch the jock even more than having the books knocked from his hands. "I guess I'll get to be the star quarterback now. I'll be the one leading the team to victory, and you'll just be yesterday's news." His hand dropped, hard, upon the blond man's shoulder, and Dash's hands clenched tightly around the crutches as he resisted the urge to hurt the other jock. "Better get used to sitting at the loser's table, because that's where you'll be sitting from now on."

"Oh, give it a rest, Calvin," Fenton, of all people, said as he forced his way between the two jocks. Dash couldn't even think of how to react to Fenton coming to his rescue. "Even if he's not playing football for the rest of the season, he'll still be way more popular than you. And you," Fenton had the gall to laugh at Calvin, "actually think that you can carry the team to the championship? That's a riot! You're the reason we lost on Friday. I hope we have another backup quarterback because if not, the rest of the season is going to be sad to watch."

"You," Calvin growled, grabbing hold of Fenton's shirt, "think you can talk to me like that?"

"Why? Are you going to beat on me?" Fenton craned his head around the jock. "With Lancer watching?"

Calvin quickly released his hold on Fenton as he twisted about to find Lancer heading toward them with an unpleasant glower on his face. "A word, Mr. Williams?" Lancer said, grabbing hold of the jock's arm. Once the two of them were gone, Fenton crouched down to pick up the fallen books.

"You didn't have to do that," Dash said, adjusting his grip awkwardly as he tried to figure out how to feel about what just happened. He never treated Fenton all that well. Why was the other man standing up for him to other jocks? Was he feeling sorry for Dash because now that his knee was busted, he wouldn't be the popular jock? "I don't need your sympathy." He glared at the raven haired man, who stood up straight to hand him his books.

"That guy was talking crap about you after the other team crushed you into the ground," Fenton said, his mouth pulling thin, and it was only after Fenton stood that Dash noticed the dark bruising on the left side of his face. "Saying crap like if he had played the whole game, we would have won, and that he would have walked away from that same incident without injuring his knee." Fenton sneered. "We may not be best friends, but I wasn't going to let him get away with talking like that about you when he's a dumbass. Anyway, you should see Kwan. He got a broken nose during the fight." He shoved the books into Dash's hands, paying little attention to the stunned look on Dash's face. Then he walked off, leaving the jock to wonder about Fenton.


	31. Shake Me, Save Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Something strange is happening with Danny, and he doesn't know what to do.  
> Characters: Dash and Danny

He really didn't know what was happening to him. The battle was over, and the ghost, some ghastly looking thing with the right side of its face melted off and its hands nothing but bones, was locked away in the Thermos ready to be dumped back into the Ghost Zone. He couldn't recall getting seriously injured in the fight. The ghost wasn't all that tough, being more of the slippery type than the over powered type. But standing there in the middle of the park, Danny could only stare down at white gloved hands, a burning sensation prickling at his skin beneath the tight jumpsuit. He never experienced anything like this in the past four years since he became a half ghost. But the more he paid attention to the burning, the more it intensified. He tried to force his mind onto another topic, but the burning kept pulling his attention back to it. His hands were shaking, and he could see green bleeding through the white.

"Phantom?"

Danny gasped when he heard the voice, almost too scared to turn around and face the jock. Of all the times to have Dash find him, this had to be the worst. Slowly, he turned, his glowing green eyes landing on the blond jock with a hint of fear in them. Dash stood only a few feet from him, dressed in jogging clothes with his blond locks slightly mussed and sweat trickling down the sides of his face.

"Man, I can't believe I'm actually meeting you like this!" Excitement showed in Dash's blue eyes as he approached, closing the gap between them.

"No!" Danny shouted frightfully, forcing Dash to stop and blink in confusion. Not knowing what was happening to him at that moment, he didn't think it would be wise to be around others at the moment. What if whatever was affecting him was harmful to humans? Terror coursed through his veins.

A frown pulled across the jock's face as Dash ignored Danny's protest and stepped up close to him. "You don't look so good. What's happening to you?"

"I - I don't know," Danny mumbled, and that lack of knowledge scared him. Who could he even go to for help on something like this? His parents might try to dissect him. His sister and friends wouldn't know what was happening to him. Most ghosts would rather see him dead than help him. Vlad would probably get a kick out of seeing him suffer. The fear made his chest squeeze painfully tight, cutting off his breath as he panicked. What was he supposed to do?

"Hey!" Dash shouted, trying to get his attention as he grabbed hold of Danny's face. "Hey, look at me!"

Danny snapped his gaze to Dash, meeting those worried blue eyes. Dash smiled somewhat, his mouth curving crookedly as they stood there silently, faces too close for comfort as they stared at each other. Danny's focus shifted from the unnatural shaking and burning to calm breathing as warmth washed over his face.

"W-What?" Danny blinked numbly as his body seemed to return to normal. "How did you do that?" His gaze dropped briefly to his hands and found no green anywhere on the white gloves. Then he glanced back up at Dash with a look of wonder in his green eyes.

"I didn't really do anything." Dash shrugged with an embarrassed blush as he turned his gaze away. "Just thought if you focused on something else, it might stop that crazy shaky thing you were doing."

"I, um-" Danny wasn't sure what to say. "Thanks." Dash was the last person Danny would have expected to actually be able to help him in that situation, and he still didn't really understand what happened. Somehow, the jock's presence calmed the panic and fear running rampant inside the half ghost.

"No problem." Dash reached up to rub the back of his neck, unable to meet Danny's gaze as the blush remained on his face. Danny had to smile, not used to seeing this modest side of Dash.


	32. A Debt Owed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Dash is stuck attending a party but discovers something that spurs him into action.  
> Characters: Dash x Danny

Dash broke away from the party, happy to leave behind the noise and gossip and the clinging women that pretended to be interested in his every word. He wished that his friends Kwan and Paulina had been able to join him, but the invitation was for him alone and they didn't receive one of their own. He sighed tiredly and strode around the large mansion where the biggest festivities for the rich was being held. Dash had never met the wealthy man putting on the event, but he caught a glimpse of the heavy set man with a horribly obvious black toupee that kept slipping to one side of his fat head. He wrinkled his nose, simply remembering the way the man's greedy fat fingers dug into the bowl food presented before him and the juices from the fruit that he bit into ran down his chin and disappeared somewhere into the rolls of his neck. If that was what one looked like when they were the wealthiest man in the country, Dash was happy his family was only moderately wealthy by comparison.

"I can't believe it's true!"

Dash paused at the sound of a man's voice coming from one of the side rooms. He glanced around, noting the plates engraved over the doors. Unicorn. Griffon. Hydra. Harpy. Names of other mythical creatures were on other plates, but the farther down the long hall he looked the harder it was to read what was listed on them. But the source of the voice he heard came from the room that read: Mermaid. Frowning, Dash pushed open the door and entered the room. It was dark with little lighting that came from a pool of water at the other end that was surrounded by rocks, which gave the whole room that underwater cavern feel to it. When his eyes adjusted to the darkness, Dash spotted the two men holding onto the arms of the long haired beauty sitting upon the rocks. The raven locks were smooth and glossy, decorated by strands of pearls and seashells.

"The skin of a mermaid really does sparkle," said one of the men as he roughly grabbed the creature by the chin and twisted the head sharply to the side as he ran his other hand down the smooth pale flesh of the long, slender neck. The mermaid's flesh did have an unnatural shimmer to it now that Dash really looked.

"What a shame the mermaid is displayed like this," the second man said, sliding a hand up a leg and pushing up the glittering slivery blue dress the creature was forced to wear while sitting upon the rocks. The mermaid, while expressionless previously, now had the brow winkled and nose scrunching up in disgust at the way the men groped at him.

"Well," the first man said, releasing his hold on the mermaid's face as he turned his head, "we can always dunk her in the pool to see her in all her glory."

Panic set in on the mermaid, and when the men grabbed hold of him, he started to struggle. Chains rattled in the effort, silver manacles wrapped tightly around the mermaid's ankle. Dash could see scarring peeking out from under those manacles as the edges had cut into the delicate flesh there. He could stand by no longer. Launching into action, Dash grabbed the first man and wrangled him free from the mermaid, dropping the creature back onto the border of rocks. The second man released the mermaid's feet in order to help his friend. When the man threw a punch, Dash ducked and countered with a hard kick to the man's groin that knocked him to the ground. The first man grabbed him from behind, wrapping an arm around his throat. Dash slammed an elbow backward, ramming it into the man's face. He gasped in a greedy breath once he was released. The man behind him groaned as he held a hand to his face.

"Get out of here!" Dash ordered, shouting at the men. "If you don't, I'll make sure to break every bone in your hands so that you can't grab at another person like that again."

The first man growled, looking ready to continue the fight, but the man that was kicked in the groin grabbed hold of his friend's shoulder. "Let's just go," he said, tugging his friend toward the exit of the room.

"You didn't have to do that," the mermaid said once the men were gone. His voice was deeper than Dash expected, but the feminine look probably misled him.

"You didn't look too keen on taking a dip," Dash said as he turned back to the so-called mermaid. He had a slender figure but was clearly male. Dash approached him with concern on his face. "Kind of odd for a merman to be afraid of the water." He knelt down before the merman and looked over the manacle on the ankles.

"I'm a salt water creature," the merman explained, and Dash glanced up to meet the bright blue eyes gazing down at him with curiosity in them. They were clear like the sky, and Dash felt like he could get lost staring into them. "That's fresh water. It could kill me to spend any amount of time in that pool."

Dash nodded. That explained why the merman decided to sit upon the rocks instead of swim in the pool. "They shouldn't be allowed to treat you like that." He lifted one leg and was surprised to feel the scales upon his flesh. They were dry, much too dry. "How long have you been out of the water?"

"A year, at least," the merman answered, bowing his head, and some of his raven hair slipped forward past his shoulder. "I was always fascinated by the surface world. I came hoping to learn more about it. I was a fool. I should have listened to my father's warning. Humans are cruel and only care for themselves."

"Not all humans," Dash argued as he pulled out a knife to work upon the manacle.

"Do you plan to set free all the creatures imprisoned here?"

Dash frowned, tossing a glance toward the door then lifting his head back to the merman. "I doubt I'll have time for anything like that. Those men probably went to tell the owner of this place what happened. I could run away now and save myself, but I can't leave you here like this. You deserve to go back to where you belong."

"How noble." His mouth spread into a wry smirk.

"The name's Dash, by the way." Dash managed to pry open one of the manacles and got to work on the next one.

"Daniel. But you may call me Danny, if you like."

"Danny? Not what I would imagine for a merman to be named." Dash shook his head with a snorting laugh. "Then again, I didn't expect to ever actually meet a merman."

"You weren't surprised that I was male." Danny lifted his eyebrows. "Most of the men to come to see me assume I'm female me. Until, well," a light flush colored his cheeks as he looked away, "they examine me more fully."

Dash ground his teeth, anger boiling inside him when he thought of how the men were touching Danny earlier. They treated like a creature, a thing without feelings that only existed for their pleasing. Dash decided they deserved a much more severe beating for their actions. He got the second manacle open and tucked away his knife.

"While you are made up to look," Dash trailed his gaze over the merman, "very much like a female, it's hard to overlook the obvious male qualities. Your hands are too masculine. You have an Adam's apple."

"I think you are the first to take notice of such things. The others were quite content taking me for what I was made to look like."

"And they're disgusting for the way they treat you." Dash stood, holding out a hand to the merman. "Let's get you back home."

Danny looked hesitant then took the hand, rising to his feet. He stumbled before gaining his balance again. "It's been a while since I've walked," he admitted, bowing his head.

"I hope you can run then because I'm pretty sure we're going to have to make a quick exit from here." Dash led the way out of the room and glanced about the hall.

"That's him!" a man shouted from the other end.

"Run!" Dash shouted to Danny as he raced the other wall down the hall. The mansion was like a maze of twisting halls, and they turned one corner in time as a gun fired a bullet that missed them.

"Don't shoot!" someone shouted in a rage. "That mermaid is my biggest money maker! I'll have her back without being harmed."

Dash, at least, had that going in his favor. As long as Danny remained with him, the guards wouldn't shoot at them for fear of injuring the man's precious treasure. Dash felt sick at that thought. Danny might be some mythical creature from the sea, but he was still a living, feeling being that deserved to be treated as something more than an object in some rich man's collection.

Behind him, Danny stumbled along, unstable on his feet after a year of imprisonment. Dash tugged on the arm, pulling the merman a step closer to him as they ran. A guard appeared in front of them, and Dash skidded to a halt, Danny bumping into his back. They were, luckily, now on the ground floor of the mansion. Instead of waiting for the guard to reach them, Dash jumped out the window nearest them. Shattered glass cut into him, but he ignored the sting as he continued to lead Danny away from the mansion and his captor. Shouting followed them as the man's guard followed after them.

"I don't think," Danny gasped out, "I can make it." They had run for quite some distance, and the merman was beginning to slow.

"We're almost there!" Dash shouted back to him, seeing the docks over the ocean not too far ahead of them. He urged the merman to keep going, praying that the guards wouldn't be able to catch them. When they finally reached the docks, Dash was breathing hard, and Danny was panting too.

"The sea," Danny breathed in amazement as he gazed at it. He quickly shed the dress and stepped up to the edge of the docks.

Dash shifted uncomfortably, angry at himself for finding the merman beautiful in the nude. It made him feel like those men groping at the merman's body, even if all he was doing was staring at the merman. Danny suddenly dove into the water with a splash, and Dash jogged forward the few steps to the edge and stared into the water, almost hoping to see the merman again. Then a head popped out of the water, surprising Dash because Danny didn't look exactly the same. His now white locks clung to his face as he stared up with vibrant green eyes.

"What?" Dash gasped, unable to think of any other response as he knelt down on the docks.

"We adopt a slightly different look when we gain legs," Danny explained, placing his hands on the docks with webbing showing between his finger as he lifted himself up out of the water. The scales were more visible like this, around his eyes and on his shoulders. At his hips that just peeked out of the water, his tail started in dark scales. "It's to help us blend in among humans." He leaned in closer and caught Dash's mouth before the man could respond. Dash reached up, sliding his hand through the wet locks as he returned the kiss, guiltily enjoying it. "Thank you," Danny whispered when they parted. "I-" He glanced up through long lash then shook his head. "I owe you a great debt. I hope someday I might repay it." Then he dropped in the water, and Dash knew he was gone.

"You!"

Dash sighed when he heard the shout moments later. He rose to his feet and turned around the face the mob of guards led by the owner of the mansion.

"How dare you steal from me!" the owner shouted furiously. "You've lost me my greatest prize."

"He _wasn't_ a prize," Dash argued with hatred burning in his eyes. "He-" The sound of a gunshot silenced him.


	33. A Life Returned

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: He woke, and everything was different.  
> Characters: Dash and Desiree

His brow knitted, his eyes screwing tighter shut as a pounding grew in his head. He didn't want to wake. Waking meant pain, shooting agony that he could still feel throbbing in his chest near his right shoulder. But a sound called his attention, drawing him away from the dark embrace of oblivion. He cracked open dark blue eyes, thankful for the dim lighting of wherever he was. Above him was hard jagged stone, like the inside of a cavern, and the air was cold, making him shiver. Dampness. He had recently been in the water, which only made the cool air of the cavern seem colder.

Dash pushed himself up on his elbow with a grunt. Someone was singing nearby, a soft melodic voice that washed over him like the gentle lapping of the sea rushing over his feet and ankles when he stood barefoot on the beach. His eyes adjusted better to the dimness of the cavern, and he spied someone sitting at the edge of a pool of water. Long black hair fell down the person's backside with a string of teardrop opal like jewels decorating it.

"Dan-" Dash winched, gritting his teeth as a particularly bad throb of pain radiated from his shoulder.

A musical laugh echoed eerily through the cavern. "Sorry to disappoint." The voice was definitely female, and Dash tensed with fear of waking up in a strange cavern with some random woman.

"Who are you?" Dash demanded, narrowing his eyes at the back of her head.

She stood and turned half to him. Her long hair draped over her front side, artfully covering her breasts while leaving enough bare to display her shapely body. She could definitely tempt any man and bend him to her will if she desired. Her dark tanned skin and almond shaped eyes made her look like an exotic beauty from a far off land. She walked over to him with a sway in her hips that drew his gaze, guilt gnawing at his sides for looking. When she reached him, she knelt down beside him.

"I am Desiree." She smiled kindly as she placed a hand upon his chest, near where the pain had returned to a dull throb. "I'm the one that saved your life." Her fingers danced over his skin.

Dash's brow creased as he dropped his gaze, locking onto where her hand circled. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw the light splattering of scales over recently knitted skin, leaving a small scar. "What did you do to me?" He reached up, brushing his hand over the spot. Touching the scales reminded him of when he felt Danny's skin against his own and felt those dry scales from the merman being too long out of the sea. The memory came back in a flash. After he helped Danny escape from his captor, one of the rich man's guards shot him. Dash fell into the water after that, and everything after that was darkness.

"I gave you the chance to live again." Desiree lifted her gaze, aqua colored eyes staring up at him from under long lashes. "You would have died if I hadn't helped you, but," she lowered her gaze, "it came with a cost."

"What do you mean? What cost?" Dash was grateful that he wasn't dead, but anger was his first response. Kwan always told him that was one of his flaws, and maybe Dash should consider working on that. But right now anger was all that fueled his veins, numbing away the pain in his shoulder from where he was shot.

Desiree snapped her gaze onto him, eyes narrowing icily, dangerously. She was a rose: beautiful but with deadly thorns. "You should be kissing my feet and thanking me for bothering to rescue you. Don't you dare to raise you voice at me." The ground almost shook, sending dread through Dash as the air cackled around them. After taking a deep breath, the woman calmed herself before continuing. "The price to save your life," her mouth curved downward as her gaze lingered on the scales upon his chest, "was to make you one of us."

"One of... who exactly?" Dash frowned as his brain scrambled to understand her meaning.

Desiree stood and returned to the pool within the cave. Turning toward him, she beckoned him to follow with the curling of a finger. Then she hopped into the pool, disappearing below the surface with a splash. Dash hesitated and took a glanced around the cavern. The pool seemed to be the only exit from it. Climbing to his feet, Dash wandered over to the pool and crouched down before it. The situation reminded him of the last time he saw Danny, and that tugged at his heart. At least, Danny was able to get away from his captor. Desiree resurfaced, placing webbed hands on the rocky ground at the edge of the pool. Like when Danny showed himself again after entering the sea, Desiree had changed her appearance. Her ebony hair remained the same, but her skin was a sickly green while her eyes were now blood red.

"Come," Desiree beckoned again as she pushed away from the edge of the pool, giving him ample room to join her in the water. She didn't need to answer his question with words. The changes explained everything to him. She was a mermaid.

Dash swallowed, his throat feeling suddenly tight. _The price was to make you one of us_. The words echoed in his head. To keep him from death's embrace, Desiree had to change him into something that wasn't human. Dash stared at the water with some apprehension. Clearly, it wasn't impossible for the merpeople to live on land for quite some time if Danny survived a year of captivity. But it also couldn't be the most comfortable way of life for him.

He thought of his parents, of his friends Kwan and Paulina, and his heart ached to see them again. After what he did to save Danny, he couldn't exactly return to his home. Danny's captor probably thought he succeeded in killing Dash, and if he dared to show himself again in town, Dash had no doubts that the man would try to kill him again. Or things could be even worse for him if the man discovered Dash was now one of the creatures he wanted back in his collection.

Dash's hands curled tightly at his sides. But accepting he was the same as Desiree and Danny meant that he would be throwing away the only life he knew and throwing away the people he cared for through all his life. But it also meant he could be with Danny as he secretly desired after meeting the merman. He knew it was silly. He barely knew anything about the merman. But that didn't stop him from wanting to get to know more about Danny.

Taking a deep breath, which he realized was pointless if he was what Desiree claimed he was, Dash launched into the water. His eyes were clamped shut as he sank into the water. He could hear laughter as clearly as if he was on land instead of floating underwater. But the sound was driven out of his mind as he twisted, pain rippling through him like water rippling after having a stone skipped along its surface. He kicked out, and for a terrifying moment, he found he couldn't separate his legs. His mouth opened to scream out in panic, and water flooded into his mouth. Choking. He was definitely going to drown now! Then he realized something odd. A tickle along his neck. He reached up, brushing his fingers over his neck, and he twitched at the way it felt to run his fingers along a slit there.

Gills. He had gills.

Dash dared to open his eyes and found Desiree floating before him with an amused smile.

"Not too bad," Desiree said as she leaned back, folding her arms under her breasts.

Dash stared then lowered his gaze. He jerked backward, slamming his back against the rocky side of the pool when he saw the red scales that sprouted from his hips all the way down to the tip of his tail. He flexed his muscles as if he still had legs, and the tail responded, kicking lightly in the water. It was... amazing! Dash laughed, the noise bubbling right out of him as he drew his tail up and ran his fingers over the scales. He could hardly believe it was real. It was all so much like a dream!

"Not so terrible price to pay for your life after all, hm?" Desiree asked, reminding Dash of her presence.

Dash pushed away from the wall, and he knew his swimming was probably sloppy compared to the rest of the merpeople, but in time he would learn to use his tail better. "I want to meet Danny." He had to see the merman again. Not to show him what had become of him but because he wanted to see that Danny was safe.

"I don't know," Desiree said, feigning uncertainty with a pouting frown.

"Please!"

"Well, I suppose we could arrange a sort of," her eyes returned to him, "deal." Her mouth stretched into a cunning grin. "You do owe me your life after all." She ran a finger under his chin and hooked a nail at the edge. "I do have the power to take that life away. So try not to forget that."

His eyes narrowed. He should have expected her to have some sort of trick up her sleeve, so to speak. It seemed some of the legends about the merpeople held true for some of them. "Fine," Dash ground out. He didn't know what exactly she expected of him. He didn't have much to offer her in return. But she could lead him to Danny. For that reason, he would go along with what she wanted. For now, anyway.


	34. A Meeting Made

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Dash arrives at the home of the merpeople with Desiree as his guide.  
> Characters: Dash, Desiree, Vlad, and Skulker

"You can stop laughing," Dash grumbled, shooting a glower at the mermaid swimming ahead of him. He could hear the soft laughter from her as she looped around him a few times before slowing her pace enough to swim at his side. "I know I'm not as great at this as you are, but I've only had this thing for about an hour." Swimming with a tail was much more difficult than he first thought it would be. He was used to having two legs to work with instead a single lower appendage, but he was trying his best to adapt to the change. Desiree laughing at his poor efforts was only igniting his anger.

As amazing as it was to have a tail and breathe underwater, Dash did still have that lingering regret, knowing that he had to give up the life he knew. Without Desiree's magic though, he wouldn't even be alive right now. His body would be floating somewhere out to sea, a lifeless corpse bleeding out and potentially attracting sharks to feast on him. Remembering that, he tried not to feel too badly about his current situation. The alternative didn't sound very pleasant to him, though he would greatly miss his family and friends.

"How much longer until we reach him?" Dash demanded, distracting himself from those depressing thoughts. It felt like they had swam for hundreds of miles already, and while they passed by beautiful coral reefs and plenty of colorful fish, he didn't care much for taking the scenic route.

"It's just up ahead." Desiree swam ahead, hiding behind some of the jaggy rocks lining the floor of the sea.

A frown creased his brow as Dash followed after her, joining her behind the rocks. When he peeked over the top of them, he gasped at the sight that greeted him. Glittering sparkles of light filled what should be a dark bowl set deep into the floor of the sea. Structures reached for the surface of the sea, made of rock, coral, and shell. He thought he even saw some mother of pearl used in the construction of the buildings. Merpeople of all different colors swam around, interacting with one another as they passed.

"How is there light down here?" Dash asked when he got over his awe at seeing the home of the merpeople. "We're hundreds of miles below the surface. Shouldn't it be all dark down here?" He stared at Desiree in wonder.

Smiling somewhat, Desiree lifted a hand, making a circular motion with it between them. A bubble formed during the action and a soft light began to glow from within it. "There are a few things that every merperson is capable of doing," she explained, holding the glowing bubble between her hands. "Creating light is only a temporary magic. I think the longest one only lasted for about three days. Then there's more permanent magic." She turned her red eyes onto him. "Like what I did to you."

Dash nodded, slightly shaken at the idea that passed through his mind about the magic she used on him being not so permanent. He imagined briefly what would happen to him if the spell used to turn him into a merman and keep him alive only lasted for a few days. It would mean a few more days to live, but then he would be as dead as if Desiree never helped him.

"Will I be able to do that?" Dash pointed at the glowing bubble. Most humans didn't have magic of any sort, so it would be interesting to suddenly possess even a little.

Desiree dropped her hands, and the bubble floated upward as the light slowly faded away. "No," she answered, frowning at him. "You were born human. While the spell to save you made you a merman and gave you our extended lifespan, it can't give you the magic naturally inherited by us."

"Oh." Dash sank somewhat as the excitement fizzled out of him. "Well, let's get going then." He pushed away from the rocks, seeing no point to stay hidden out there when the home of the merpeople, specifically Danny, lay right before them. Why were they hiding behind the rocks anyway?

"This," Desiree said as she swam up beside Dash, "is where things might get a little complicated."

"What do you mean?" Dash caught the wince on her expression and didn't find it very reassuring.

"Halt!"

Dash managed to stop swimming before the tip of a trident pierced right into his throat. He gulped as he stared down at the silver trident then followed it up to the wielder, who was a bigger and more muscular merman. The shock of green hair waving in the water matched with his bright green eyes that narrowed at the pair before him. His flesh was pale, and his tail looked silvery, gleaming from the bubbles of light around the merpeople's home.

"You are not welcomed here," the guard said, his glower lingering on Desiree.

Dash eyed the mermaid, frowning in suspicion. "I get the feeling you left out quite a few details."

"I was going to tell you this wasn't the best idea." Desiree looked away, folding her arms, which only drew attention to her generous bosom. "But you were quite insistent on seeing him."

Dash started to understand why Desiree was hiding behind the rocks when they arrived. If she wasn't welcomed here, she wouldn't want them to take notice of her. But why wouldn't she tell him that from the beginning? Was there something she hoped to gain by coming here with him? He felt like he was being used by her, but he couldn't figure out her game.

"I only want to see someone," Dash explained, hoping the guard could be reasoned with. "We don't even have to enter your, uh-" What did merpeople even call their home? Should he call it a town? Somehow, that didn't sound like it really fit.

"What is all this commotion?" asked another merman as he swam over to them. His skin was a strange blue, and his tail, though black, seemed to have hint of blue when the light hit it just right. A crown rested atop his raven hair that had an odd lighter stripe down the center. His red eyes surveyed the pair being held off by his guard, and his mouth pressed thin with an unpleasant wrinkling of his nose. He waved a hand, and the guard backed away from them, leaving the crowned merman to deal with them.

"I wouldn't call it a commotion," Dash muttered then shrank back when the crowned merman glared down at him.

"What possessed you to do something so foolish?" he demanded, snapping his red eyes filled with fury onto Desiree. "Turning a human and bringing him here? You are far madder than I thought."

Desire swam up to him, drawing herself even with him, and she showed no sign of being cowed by his heated glare. The guard tensed, but apparently without an order or a real threat to the blue skinned merman, he wasn't allowed to interfere. Desiree hissed, "He _saved_ one of us, Vlad."

So that was his name. Vlad glanced past her, and his gaze lingered on Dash as if sizing him up. "That hardly makes him trustworthy. He is likely to be as greedy and cruel as any other human. We don't want him or you here." When Vlad turned to leave, Desiree swam in front of him, placing a hand to his chest to stop him.

"I find it hard to believe that you _haven't_ noticed a certain someone's power growing." Desiree narrowed her eyes as she leaned in closer to him. "And we both know that he's going to need someone to teach him before that power gets out of control."

"He has a teacher," Vlad stated through clenched teeth.

Desiree blinked then laughed. "You? Ha!" She laughed again. "You know I'll be a far better teacher than you."

"He needs to learn _proper_ magic. Not your devil's magic." Vlad snagged hold of Desiree's wrist and yanked her closer to him. "I will _not_ have you corrupt him and suffer banishment with you."

"Oh, we're back on _that_ again, are we?" Desiree yanked her hand free of his hold but didn't pull back. The pair were practically butting heads as they glared at each other. "Maybe if your son had been able to keep his hands to himself, I wouldn't have had to use my magic on him."

"You could have used any number of other spells to punish him. You _knew_ that spell was irreversible and that he wouldn't be allowed to stay here afterward."

"I merely cast the most appropriate spell on him. _You_ could have changed your stupid laws."

"Um," Dash said, trying to cut into the conversation that he could hardly follow. He almost shrank again when both of them glared at him. "Look. I don't want to cause any sort of trouble here. I just wanted to make sure Danny-"

"You know Daniel?" Surprise flashed on Vlad's face, chasing away the anger.

"Who do you think rescued him?" Desiree rolled her eyes as she placed her hands on her hips, just above where her tail began. "Really, Vlad, sometimes you can be so dense." She smirked when he glowered at her again.

"And you allowed him to trick you into making him one of us?" Vlad seethed, looking like he was ready to slap Desiree for being so gullible. "He saw Daniel and became entranced like all humans when they see us."

"I won't lie," Dash said, and he found it annoying how they kept talking about him but not necessarily _to_ him. "When I first saw him, I was entranced by him. He is beautiful. But when I saw those other men touching him and treating him like some object without feeling, I was disgusted by their actions. I wanted to free Danny from living imprisoned like that. I didn't ask Desiree to change me into this because of some perverse attraction to Danny. I didn't ask for any of this at all. I only came to see Danny to make sure he made it home safely."

"He speaks the truth there," Desiree said, giving Dash a once over before directing her attention back onto Vlad. "He risked his life to save Danny. The other humans shot him after he freed Danny. He'd be dead right now if I didn't work my magic on him."

"Is that supposed to convince me that you've turned over a new leaf?" Vlad's expression soured as he stared at Desiree. "This is all just part of your plan to manipulate your way back into our kingdom. You've always been a cunning witch."

"No more cunning than you, my King." Desiree smirked, and Dash wondered if she had some dirt on him. Scratch that. She definitely had some dirt on him, if that withering glare from Vlad said anything, which it did. It spoke volumes. What was the connection between them anyway? "Would it really be so bad to let him see that Danny made it here unharmed?"

"Fine," Vlad growled, clearly not happy with this turn of events. "But you," he glared as he pointed at Desiree, "will have nothing to do with teaching Daniel anything about magic." He turned and started swimming toward the tallest building within the merpeople's home, which Dash guessed to be the castle.

When he felt a shove from behind, Dash glanced briefly at the green haired merman before following after Desiree and Vlad. As they grew closer, he started to feel nervous about seeing Danny again. It felt like that night happened years ago, or maybe that it was just some fantasy produced in his dreams. Except he was there swimming through the water with his own tail and breathing with his own gills. Soon, he would get to see that Danny was alive and well, and that thought brought relief to him.


	35. No More Games

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Vlad was in for a big surprise when the young woman entered his office.  
> Characters: Vlad x Valerie

"M-Miss Gray!" Vlad practically yelped out in his surprise after Valerie propped herself up on his desk, hooked her finger around his necktie, and dragged him forward into a very passionate kiss. He tried to regain his composure after that shock, but he was having a rather hard time of it as she tugged on the tie, slowly drawing it from its neat bow. "This is hardly appropriate behavior for the work place!"

Valerie lifted her gaze to him, her eyebrows rising in a look that spoke of innocence and completely not understanding what he could possibly mean by that as the first of his shirt's button slipped free of its hole under the work of her deft fingers. "Inappropriate?" she repeated then kissed him on the cheek, and he knew he was going to have lipstick marks everywhere if this activity didn't stop now. "How?"

"You know very well _how_ ," Vlad said in a clipped tone as he placed his hands on her shoulders and pushed back from her enough to allow him some room to breathe. It didn't help as well as he thought it might when his gaze dipped for a brief moment and noted the way the spaghetti strap of her yellow tank top slipped down one shoulder or the way her legs were spread to allow him to fit neatly between them. Her orange skirt seemed inappropriately short with the way she sat, and if he hadn't snapped his gaze back up to meet her green eyes, he was certain he would have caught a very naughty glimpse of her panties. "How do you think this will look if someone walked in at this very moment?"

Valerie sighed, annoyance flickering in her eyes as if trying to tell him he had ruined the entire moment now. "Vlad, we've been dancing around this for two years now. And don't," she glared and pointed a finger nearly right between his eyes, "you dare try to deny it. I'm not some silly little girl getting lost in some stupid romantic fantasy. I know very well how people are likely to react to a relationship between us. I've thought on that for the last two years, ever since I started realizing I kind of liked you, even though I probably shouldn't have because I should have resented you for everything you did to me, but I couldn't because without what happened with you and Danny, I certainly wouldn't be the woman I am today, and I really like who I am now instead of whom I used to be before everything felt like it hit the fan." She paused only to take a breath, and Vlad guilty glanced downward to watch the way her chest rose during that action. Her gaze was like hard steel when he met it again. "And I know you've realized you have feelings for me too. I've seen that look in your eyes when you glance around the room purposely just to find me. I know you have that one smile that's reserved just for me. You don't actually smile that much, so that really wasn't that hard to notice. And I know you purposely brush up close to me, even when it's totally unnecessary just for that small incidental touch."

Vlad could feel the blush steadily growing darker across his cheeks, spreading to the tips of his ears. She had noticed all of that? Of course she had. He should have realized. Valerie was an observant and intelligent young woman, but something told Vlad that she had noticed his feelings toward her long before he realized them himself. After a confrontation with Daniel, Vlad promised that he would change. He even started seeing Spectra, and his talks with her helped him let go of his blind obsession with Maddie so that he could move on, as well as let go of his anger toward Jack. He felt happier afterward. He reconnected with his friends, and he was able to form a new relationship with Daniel. Even his relationship with Danielle improved, though she refused any significant amount of money that he offered her. She was far too independent to rely on his help for survival, but she was doing quite well on her own.

Valerie hit him by surprise. She agreed to stay under his employ, and if she wanted after college, there would always be a position open for her. They worked together to keep the town safe from ghosts, joining up with Daniel as necessary. It made more sense for them to have separate areas to patrol for ghost activity, rather than overlapping and getting in each other's way. Daniel kept to his area, and Vlad kept watch over his section, sending Valerie out as necessary. He was a busy man, after all, and couldn't always go out to deal with trouble making ghosts himself. But he came to realize he developed feelings that were rather inappropriate toward Valerie, and it came out in an embarrassing session with Spectra, who wasn't above lording it over him like a smug cat that just figured out how to get the canary. He tried to ignore such feelings as much as possible, but it grew increasingly difficult, and especially now, it was nearly impossible to ignore how her nearness affected him. She seemed to be quite aware of that fact too when she shifted on the desk, her legs spreading just slightly to draw his eye. Or how when she leaned forward slightly, it better showed off her cleavage.

"Valerie," Vlad said, managing some firmness in his tone as he frowned at her. If he didn't manage to direct this conversation away from dangerous waters, he was going to be in a world of trouble. "While what you say may hold some truth-"

"Some truth? _Some_?" Valerie snorted. "Let's not play games or beat around the bush. I'd rather we just have a direct talk about this. My birthday was two week ago. Two. Weeks. Ago." She glared at him as she stressed each word. "I've been of legal age for two weeks now. This," she waved a finger between them, "may have been illegal two weeks and one day ago, but it's technically perfectly legal now. I'm not saying I want this to go straight into sex, because that's more of a major conversation between us. And I prefer at least six dates before sex comes up. But I've been waiting two years to kiss you, and I'm not going to keep waiting."

"Val-" He hardly had the chance to argue when Valerie pulled him in for another kiss, their lips crushing together.

Though it was rushed, and perhaps a bit sloppy, Vlad really couldn't say he didn't enjoy it. His hands rested lightly on her hips as he tilted his head, adjusting their kiss just a touch as their lips moved against each other. Her fingers threaded through his hair before tugging the hair tie free and allowing his silver locks to fall free. He growled into the kiss, only a little annoyed by her action, but he was already going to have to fix up his appearance anyway before his meeting later. After a rather lengthy time that involved some nipping at and sucking upon lips, they finally broke apart, leaving both of them breathless.

"Is Saturday a good night for a date then?" Vlad questioned.

"Perfect." Valerie smiled. "Pick me up at seven." She hopped off the desk, fixing her attire quite quickly and easily. Then she leaned up, placing a quick peck of a kiss on his cheek before heading for the door of his office.

Vlad collapsed into the chair at his desk with a sigh of content. The kiss was replaying in a loop in his head, and he knew he probably looked ridiculous with the grin on his face, but he simply couldn't stop it. Valerie had grown up to be quite the woman. Strong, intelligent, beautiful, and very strong willed. She knew what she wanted, and she knew how to get it.


	36. Opportunity Knocks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Life has changed a lot for him over the years since his defeat, and some changes still surprise him.  
> Characters: Dan and Kwan

Dan sighed tiredly as he dragged the bag of trash into the back alley behind the apartment building. He hated all the little chores that came with having to appear human. Sometimes, it made him long for the Ghost Zone, but then he remembered how dreadfully boring and gloomy it could be there. It was certainly far better to be given the chance to roam freely among the real world, under the condition of course that he didn't use his powers unless necessary. He glowered as he lifted the lid of the dumpster to toss in the bag of trash. Danny promised to visit him frequently to check up and make sure that he was honoring the condition. Dan rolled the dark blue eyes of his human disguise. Clockwork would know immediately if he was using his powers unnecessarily, so Danny didn't really need to bother himself with keeping tabs on his evil future.

If he was honest about it all though, Dan would have to admit that he rather liked being able to talk on friendly terms with Danny. Five years ago, he never would have imagined it possible, but after Danny defeated him for a second time, he offered Dan the chance to let go of the anger and anguish built up in him over the years. The start of which involved his younger half dragging him right back to Fenton Works, and not caring about himself, Danny told his parents everything about himself and who exactly Dan was. Everyone was in shock, Danny's friends and his sister worrying over him and how his parents would react to learning that he was half ghost. Dan shook his head. His anger would have reignited right then over the fact that, of course, Danny's parents would accept him no matter what, if they hadn't also accepted him with open arms into their lives.

Okay. Maybe not quite open arms. After hearing about the evil he had done, they were hesitant about approaching him. But after spending a few months with him, they were much more accepting of him. Regaining his family went a long way to helping him put away his anger. They weren't really _his_ parents anymore, but they still accepted him like a son. They set him up with a false identity, with some help from Vlad of all people, and they helped him with getting a job and finding an apartment, as he refused to burden them by sticking around their house all the time. They visited him as well, and he was always happy to see them. It was better like this. Much better. He didn't feel quite as angry at the world anymore.

He was closing the lid of the dumpster when a sound caught his ear. It was an annoying little jingle like a ringtone of a cell phone. His brow creased as he stepped toward the other end of the dumpster and craned around the side, preparing himself for a fight if some crazy person tried to jump out at him. But his mouth tugged downward as he stared at the man sitting on the ground, leaning his back up against the dumpster and simply staring at the phone ringing in his hands.

"You gonna answer that?" Dan questioned, and the man jumped, spooked by the sudden presence of another person. Dan's brow creased even more. The man was so zoned out that he didn't even notice someone else approached him, and Dan hadn't exactly been quiet about throwing away his trash. That could be dangerous if some lunatic _did_ show up, which Dan sort of still was, but he wasn't about to go on a killing spree again anytime soon.

"Uh, no, yes, maybe, no." The man shook his head, seeming rather conflicted. "It's my sister," he explained, turning his head up to stare at Dan, who was taken aback by those familiar aqua green eyes.

"Sh-" Dan caught himself before saying anything more as the man's face scrunched up with his confusion at the near outburst. Kwan certainly wouldn't know who he was, and Dan couldn't really explain how he knew the former jock without some really awkward questions that he wasn't prepared to answer yet. "Uh, you're not going to answer a call from your sister?" He raised a brow, hoping the question would distract the man.

"Yeah," Kwan answered, flushing lightly as he turned his gaze away. "She's up in my apartment right now. Visiting. With her baby." He bent his head down and pressed the cell phone against his forehead. "She wants me to babysit for her tonight, but I really don't think I can do it. I held the baby for, like, two seconds, and he started screaming his head off! I'm so not meant to do the baby thing."

Dan would have laughed at the situation, but he could see the panic and worry on Kwan's face. He was really stressing over this. "Hey, tell you what," he said, offering a hand to the other man. "After your sister shuffles off to do whatever she's gonna do, I come over to your place and help you out. It's got to be easier taking care of a baby with a second person around than doing it by yourself, right?"

Kwan stared hesitantly at him before taking the hand offered to him. "You don't - I mean, we don't even know each other." He frowned, and at standing height, he just a fraction shorter than Dan. He might be older now, but he hadn't let his body go to waste, which made Dan wonder if the man still kept up playing football.

Dan smirked somewhat at the comment. If Kwan only knew, but Dan wasn't going to tell him about their past. He remembered his life as Danny, as much as he remembered life from Vlad, but it no longer really felt like he existed as either of them. The memories felt like they were merely implanted into his head rather than memories that he actually lived.

"Dan Masters," he said, leading the way back into the apartment building. They decided having him use Vlad's name would avoid confusion with Danny. It was hard to ignore the resemblance between him and Danny, but maybe people wouldn't suspect anything when he used the name Masters.

"Kwan Long." The awkwardness in the former jock's movements as he followed after the other man almost made Dan laugh. He couldn't recall seeing the jock being that awkward during freshmen year.

"So did you think that hiding out behind the dumpster was going to save you from babysitting duty?" Dan chuckled that time as an embarrassed flush came over Kwan's face.

"No," Kwan mumbled, looking away. "I came down to throw out some trash, but after tossing it in the dumpster, I just," he reached up to rub at the back of his neck, "couldn't get myself to go back up to my apartment. That probably sounds silly." He wouldn't look at Dan as they climbed the stairs, and Dan allowed the other man to lead the way to his apartment.

"Because you ran away from something?" Dan snorted, his eyes turning distant. "If we're thinking people are silly for that, you have more reason to think I'm silly than I do you."

"What?" Kwan turned to blink at him, stopping outside the door of one apartment on the fourth floor.

Dan shook his head. "Forget about it. This is your apartment?" He nodded his head toward the door, reading the number of four C on it.

"Uh, yeah," Kwan answered, shifting his weight as his gaze darted to the door then to Dan then away.

"Right. Then I'll come back in a little while. Let your sister have the chance to leave and all." Dan turned back down the hall and walked down the stairs. He shook his head, not understanding this at all himself. Why was he even offering to help Kwan? His mouth thinned and his nose wrinkled. It was just how Danny would act, always swooping in to be a hero. Five years ago, heck maybe even two or three years ago, he never would have considered lending a hand to help someone. Now he was doing it without even thinking about it. Maybe he had changed more than he thought over the years.

Kwan was a decent sort though. From his memories of freshmen year, Dan knew Kwan wasn't a big bully like some, well most, of the other jocks. The guy wrote fluffy poetry from what Sam told him. Dan chuckled to himself, wondering if Kwan still kept up with writing poetry. Maybe he would have to ask about that.

"Trust me," said a woman as she came down the stairs behind him. "My brother will be just fine watching over Drew for a few hours. No, you don't have to worry about anything. After six months, I think we both deserve a night to ourselves to relax." She kept talking on her phone as she passed by Dan on her way to the ground floor of the apartment building. She was obviously Kwan's sister, sharing that same bronzy skin and the same dark hair as her brother. She was older by at least four years, and that might explain why Dan had no memories from Danny about Kwan having a sister. She was pretty, tying up her long hair into a neat bun.

Dan waited until she was well past him before he turned around and headed back up to the fourth floor. After a short stroll down the hall, he stood in front of the door of apartment four C. He stared at the worn coppery number and letter. He could easily just walk away and not bother with helping the man, but he had promised. Promises apparently meant something to him now, and he blamed his younger half for that. He knocked on the door and waited for Kwan to answer.


	37. Christmas Truce: A Night of Surprises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: It is Danny's first time hosting the Christmas Truce party.  
> Characters: Danny, Tucker, Sam, Vlad, Nocturne, and Vortex

For most of his life, Christmas was never the merry time of the year for him. While everyone was getting in the festive mood and spreading holiday cheer as Christmas grew nearer, Danny was sulky and gloomy over the approaching holiday. But ever since getting his ghost powers, his opinion of the holiday had changed, and not solely due to the Ghost Writer's little stunt of trapping him in a rhyming Christmas tale that he could control with the typing of words on his Quantum Keyboard. That was the year that Danny learned about the Ghost Zone's Christmas Truce. The following year, Danny got to look forward to avoiding his parents' continued argument about Santa Claus for a time by escaping into the Ghost Zone to join the rest of the ghosts at the party. It was strange to spend time with them when the rest of the year, they were always fighting him, but it was nice and he got the opportunity to actually get to know the ghosts a little.

It wasn't until his second time attending the Christmas Truce party that he got to make his amends with the Ghost Writer, who wasn't quite willing to accept the apology. The glaring of all other ghosts at the party, however, forced him to, perhaps a bit grudgingly, accept it. After some prodding from some still disgruntled ghosts, the Ghost Writer muttered an apology for causing so much trouble and potentially ruining everyone's Christmas with his revenge for his ruined book.

This year, however, the duty of setting up for the Christmas Truce party fell on his shoulders. If dealing with school wasn't enough of a hassle for him, organizing the party added to his stress. Danny rubbed at his temple as he stared down at the clipboard with his drawing for the layout of how he wanted to set up the decorations. When he lifted his head, he sighed tiredly, finding that things weren't exactly how he wanted them to be.

"This is impossible," Danny complained, almost at the point of wanting to throw down the clipboard in his frustration. The Christmas Truce party was later that night, and the place where he was hosting it looked pathetic at best.

"Maybe you could ask some of the other ghosts for help," Tucker suggested as he added one of the ornaments from a crate onto the tree. "They probably wouldn't mind. I mean, this is the one time where they all actually help out and stuff."

"No," Danny said rather firmly as he frowned. "I need to do this without their help. I need to prove that I can do this to them." He left the clipboard on one of the long tables set up around the room. Then he walked over to help with setting up the rather large Christmas tree. "You guys don't need to stay. You've already helped out enough, and you should go be with your families."

"We don't mind helping," Sam said, circling around the tree with a string of shimmering tinsel. She was the one that found a place where he could set up for the Christmas party: an old abandoned warehouse that belonged to her family's company but was no longer in use. Since he didn't have his own lair within the Ghost Zone, this was the best Danny could do. He just hoped that his parents would be so busy with their Santa Claus argument that they wouldn't pay attention to the large amount of ghosts gathered in one place.

Danny took the string of tinsel from Sam, and after transforming, he flew up in a circular path to lay the tinsel around the tall tree. Ghost powers certainly had their advantages. "I appreciate that," he said as he returned to the ground, "but I'll feel bad knowing I've kept you from spending the holiday with your families. So go on." He shooed them. "I can handle the rest of the setup by myself." Actually, he didn't think he would get very much done alone before the ghosts started showing up, but he didn't want to make Tucker and Sam waste all their time helping him.

Tucker and Sam shared reluctant glances before they both agreed to go.

"We'll see you tomorrow," Sam said, giving him a hug. "Gift exchange as usual, right?" Danny nodded with a smile.

"You can tell us how the party went," Tucker said, slapping Danny on the back. They waved as they left the warehouse.

Once they were gone, Danny glanced around the warehouse and sighed. He rolled up the sleeves of his Christmas sweater. He had a lot of work to do and only a few more hours in which to do it. Clockwork's Time Stop ability sounded really good right now, and it was almost tempting to dive into the Ghost Zone and see if Clockwork might be willing to pause time just long enough for him to set everything up. Snorting, Danny knew that was an impossible wish. He had time, having been notified in advanced, to set up, but with school, his free time to work on decorating the warehouse was limited until their break started. Then his time didn't feel like enough.

He groaned as he finished placing the last ornament on the tree. Didn't the ghosts realize that he had life and obligations that came with that? He couldn't spending every waking hour of his life working on preparing to throw the biggest and best Christmas Truce party ever. He also didn't have a lot of cash to spend on it. Gifts for his friends and family, plus buying the giant tree, took up most of what he had. The ornaments and tinsel and lights for the tree all came from his, Sam, and Tucker's families. They picked off what they thought they could get away with taking, the little bits and pieces that would go unnoticed. It wasn't a lot, but he thought the tree looked fairly nice when he stepped back to take a look at it.

A sudden shiver made him gasp. Danny spun around, immediately transforming as his green eyes narrowed. The ghost he sensed approached, and it wasn't any of the ones he was expecting. When the ghost strolled into the warehouse, Danny resisted that immediate urge to blast him in the face.

"Vlad," Danny growled, holding back enough to keep the glow of energy from appearing around his balled fists.

"Hello, Daniel," Vlad said, though his attention seemed to be elsewhere. His red eyes swept around the warehouse. "How quaint." His nose wrinkled just a touch, but it was enough to make Danny feel insulted.

"What are you doing here?"

Vlad turned his gaze onto Danny, who blinked, realizing for the first time the difference in the older half ghost. He wasn't dressed in the way Danny recalled after their years of battling one another. He ditched the white tunic, instead favoring a dark form fitting suit with a bright red cravat. He kept his cape though, but now it was pitch black instead white with red lining underneath. His raven locks were smoothed back and drawn into a ponytail that looked much more fitting on him than the horned look. Danny's brow creased, pondering over the change in Vlad's ghost appearance.

"I'm half ghost, aren't I?" Vlad's eyebrows lifted, an amused smile tugging at his mouth. "Aren't I invited to the Christmas Truce party too?"

"You've never come before," Danny said, still on guard about Vlad's appearance. "You do realize that you can't start up trouble at this party, right? It's a _truce_ party. There's no fighting allowed."

"Daniel, I know quite well what a truce party is." Vlad walked slowly around the area, and Danny followed his movements. "Is this all you planned to do for the party?"

Danny scowled then walked over to the table where he left the clipboard. "No," he grumbled as he walked over to Vlad. "I had it all planned out." He thrust out the clipboard, nearly jabbing it into the older half ghost's chest. "But I'm short on cash and time to get it all done."

Vlad looked over the sketch for the decorations of the room. "That's not bad looking," he admitted with some surprise. "Did you plan for food as well?"

"I-" Danny paled. "I hadn't even thought of that!" He forgot all about the food the other ghosts had served at past truce parties. How was he to even prepare that? He couldn't exactly go out and order a catering company to prepare ghost friendly food, even if he could afford it.

"Daniel, I understand wanting to pull this off on your own, but this was a tall task to ask of an eighteen year old." Vlad handed the clipboard back to Danny. "If you like, I can make sure everything gets done before the other guests arrive."

"W-What?" Danny stared at Vlad, the clipboard nearly slipping from his grasp. Vlad was actually offering to help him? Danny could hardly believe it. "My mom's not going to know anything about this, Vlad. You don't have to pretend to be all nice and helpful. It won't win you any points with her."

Vlad snorted like the suggestion that he was doing any of this for Danny's mother was a juvenile thought. "I'm merely offering a hand to help. But if you'd rather keep the party looking like," he waved a hand around with his nose wrinkling again, "this, then be my guest. I'm sure the other ghosts will appreciate all the hard work you did. They certainly won't feel offended by the lack of the usual grand scale that their parties have."

Danny's mouth pulled thin as he narrowed his eyes. He knew the warehouse wasn't decorated as nicely as the other ghosts had done in the past. He didn't need Vlad to rub that fact in his face. "Why do you want to help me?" He folded his arms and eyed Vlad with some suspicion. "What do you gain from helping me?"

"Nothing, my boy. I merely thought you could use the help. After all, you must have been pressed for time with having school work to take care of." Vlad glanced around again. "And judging by things, you've only relied on your human half to pull off this party."

One eyebrow quirked upward. "How else was I supposed to pull off this party?" Danny was hesitant to know the answer, still uncertain about this whole... new Vlad that appeared before him. He still had some of that same smugness about him, but something was definitely different. For one, Danny couldn't seem to find any way for this to be one of Vlad's schemes.

"I could show you if you like."

"Is this some way to somehow trick me into joining sides with you?" Danny tensed up, readying himself for a fight. "Because I can tell you right now, that is never going to happen."

"This is no trick, boy." Vlad frowned, slight offense in his eyes. "Are you saying you don't wish to accept my help?" He started toward the door.

"Wait!" Danny shouted, and the older half ghost paused. "I can't believe I'm saying this." He rubbed at his forehead. "But I could use the help. The other ghosts are supposed to be coming soon, and this is hardly how I wanted things to look. So if you're really offering, with no tricks, will you help me?"

Vlad turned around slowly. "Gladly." He smirked with a hint of victory in it. "Let's get started then, shall we?"

The time flew by rather quickly, and Danny couldn't believe they were able to get the warehouse completely decorated, and nearly identical to how he drew it up in his sketchbook. Vlad even called upon a few of his underlings to bring in some food suitable to serve to the ghostly guests. Vlad showed Danny a few tricks that he could do with his powers, and not once did he say or do anything in an attempt to sway Danny to his side. Before Danny could even talk to Vlad about the strange change in him, the guests started appearing and the party got into full swing.

Danny was busy playing good host, weaving between groups to chat and entertain. It was exhausting, and he much preferred being a simple guest instead. He kept trying to catch hold of Vlad, but the moment he got close, other ghosts would get in his way and the older half ghost would mysteriously vanish from where Danny last saw him. It was rather vexing to the young hybrid. When he sensed another ghost, make that three ghosts, approaching, he went to greet them as they entered.

"Vortex," Danny said, smiling though it was unusual for the weather ghost to appear at the truce party. His eyebrows rose in surprise when he saw who was with Vortex. "Nocturne!" His green eyes darted back and forth between weather ghost and dream ghost. "First time I've seen either of you at the truce party. And you're arriving... together?"

"Were we not invited for some reason?" Vortex demanded with that wheezy quality in his voice, and Danny winced with each spitted word.

"That's not-"

"Don't get started." Nocturne frowned severely at the weather ghost as he placed his hands on what might have been the hips of his star speckled body. "There will be no fighting at this party, so try to behave." Vortex grumbled like a scolded child, and Danny bit his lip to keep from laugh. "Normally," Nocturne said as he turned to address the half ghost, "we don't bother with this celebration. But we decided," he glared when Vortex released a snorting laugh that he quickly turned into a cough, "to attend. It would be a good chance to introduce everyone to-"

Danny's yelp interrupted Nocturne, and he jumped away, still feeling a bit jittery after that small zap like electricity running up his arm.

"I guess Nimbus likes you," Nocturne said with some surprise.

"Nimbus?" Danny questioned, furrowing his brow as he rubbed at his arm.

"Ah! Not so fast you little dust devil!" Vortex reacted quickly, snatching hold of the floating child that nearly got away from him.

Danny stared, his eyes nearly bugging out of their sockets as they snapped from Nocturne to Vortex to the child. "You," he pointed at Nocturne, his voice cracking slightly, "and you?" His finger jerked over to Vortex, who held the child comfortably in his arms. The child's little arms wiggled about, and Danny felt his surprise mounting as little bits of cloud started to take form, shaping into what looked like a little bunny that the child then hugged to his chest. The young half ghost didn't think he could take any more surprises in one night. Vlad being helpful and nice without ulterior motives was already mind breaking enough to him.

"Is there a problem with that?" Vortex demanded, his red eyes narrowing as if daring Danny to say something and give him a reason to start a fight.

"No," Danny said quickly, holding up his hands, "no, no. Of course not. I'm just surprised is all. I never knew you two were, you know, a thing."

"We've been a 'thing,' as you put it, for the last three hundred years," Nocturne said with a bit of a huff to his voice.

"Should we really include the time during my imprisonment by the Observants?"

"Why not?" Nocturne blinked at Vortex's question. "I certainly wasn't unfaithful to you. Unless you have something you wish to tell me." His eyes narrowed, and Vortex quickly shook his head. "Good."

"Well," Danny laughed with some nervousness, "I hope you enjoy the party."

"It looks like you've done quite well for your first year hosting," Nocturne said, gazing about impressed by the decorations.

"Perhaps we'll let you babysit Nimbus for us sometime," Vortex said with a wheezing chuckle. "Since he seems to like you so much."

"Ha, ha, yeah." Danny rubbed his arm again, but dread settled into the pit of his gut at the idea of babysitting for the ghost child. He tried to shake that thought out of his mind as he returned to his duty of being the host of the Christmas Truce party.


	38. Hugs and Kisses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: It's a special girl's birthday!  
> Characters: Vlad, Jack, Jazz, Danny, and Dash

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this for Ghost Chicky's birthday, using her Family Breakfast AU.

"How's the birthday girl?" Vlad asked, crouching down before the young lady. She looked quite lovely in her black dress that reached down to her knees. It was accented with an aqua sash that matched the ribbon in her auburn hair.

Jazz, as of today age eight, was already showing signs of being as beautiful and elegant, not to mention intelligent, as her mother. She reached up, keeping her head bowed, as she pushed a lock of her hair, which was getting fairly long now, behind her ear. Her other hand hugged a book, much thicker than the books other children her age were likely reading, to her chest. Her birthday party would be starting shortly, but she looked like she was more interested in reading the book he bought her for her birthday present then interacting with her friends.

A squeal of glee tore his attention away from her for a moment. Jack wandered into the front room with their son high above his head. Danny wiggled his arms and legs, laughing and smiling. Jack gave him a small toss in the air and easily caught Danny as he dropped back down. There were times when Danny would accidentally activate his flight powers and remain floating over Jack, who would pretend to be completely shocked each time.

"Are you excited about the party?" Vlad asked as he turned his attention back to Jazz. Her aqua colored eyes were focused on Danny as she frowned.

"Mom invited everyone in my class," Jazz mumbled quietly. "But," she bit her lower lip, her brow wrinkling with worry, "what if no one comes?"

Vlad sighed and moved to sit on the couch. He wrapped an arm around the young girl's waist and drew her to him, lifting her onto his lap. "Jazz, why do you think no one would come to your birthday party? You are a sweet, kind girl, who is always caring toward others."

"They call her a nerd," Danny supplied, not so helpfully, as Jack caught him once again then lowered him to balance their son on his hip.

"Daniel," Jack said firmly with a severe frown that he only used when he wanted the children to know he wasn't happy about their behavior.

"What?" Danny blinked owlishly. "I didn't say I called her that."

Jazz hugged her book just a bit tighter to her chest. "It's not just that though." She frowned at Danny and Jack then twisted her head around to Vlad. "They call us freaks. Because our family isn't normal by what society has decided is the standard. One mother. One father. That's what their parents tell them, so they look at our family and they think there must be something wrong."

"But you know there's nothing wrong with it, right, Jazzypants?" Jack asked with a flash of hurt and sorrow in his eyes. None of them wanted their children to be the target of bullying because they happened to love two people equally. But the world wasn't perfect. People saw things that were different as something to hate. That hate was then learned by their children, and it continued to be passed down through the generations.

"I know. You, Dad, and Mom all love each very much. And you love Danny and me, and we love you too." The frown didn't leave Jazz's face. "But my classmates' parents don't like it. What if they don't want their children associating with me?"

Vlad hugged Jazz tightly. He had money and power, and he could probably threaten or bribe the children into playing with Jazz. But that wouldn't be real. Jazz deserved real friendship with people who truly cared for her.

"I wanna give Jazz her present!" Danny shouted, breaking up the tense silence. He squirmed in Jack's arms until his father set him down on his feet. Then he shot out of the room like a rocket. In a moment, he returned, hugging a big present to his chest as he waddled his way over to his sister. "Happy birthday, Jazz!" He extended his arms, holding out the present to her.

Jazz took the present and, much more carefully than other children her age would, unwrapped it. When she lifted the lid of the box, she gasped then pulled out the stuffed bear within it. It had a little lab coat and wild gray hair and a mustache under a big round nose.

"It's Bearbert!" Jazz exclaimed happily as she hugged it to her chest. After a moment, she hopped down from Vlad's lap and hugged her brother.

"Ew, cooties!" Danny complained, and Jazz laughed and planted a kiss on top of his head. Danny made a face, but it was broken up by a smile.

When the doorbell rang, Vlad had roll his eyes with a sigh. Jack apparently decided to change the doorbell to one that sounded like ghosts. Already on his feet, Jack was first to reach the door. Vlad followed at a more sedate pace with Jazz and Danny trailing behind him, which brought to his mind the image of baby ducklings following their parents. He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from chuckling softly at that thought.

"Look who it is, Jazzypants!" Jack said happily, holding the door open to reveal a small blond boy.

"Dad!" Jazz whined as her face reddened. She stayed close to Vlad but didn't hide behind him the way Danny was currently doing. "H-Hi, Dash." She shifted awkwardly, hold her arm at the elbow behind her back as her other hand curled around the fabric of her skirt.

"H-Hi," the boy stuttered, seeming equally awkward. "I just - It's your birthday. And I thought - Here!" He held out a small present that was crudely wrapped, as if the boy had done it himself.

Jazz stepped forward to accept the gift. "Are you going to stay for the party?"

The boy's dark blue eyes darted between Jack and Vlad, and he seemed rather intimidated by them. Then he nodded stiffly and stepped into the house. Jazz took his hand and led him into the front room, which was decorated with streamers. Vlad smiled, happy to see one friend, at least, came to the party, but he was going to keep an eye on that boy, who had a soft blush on his cheeks as he stood beside Jazz.


	39. Exchange of Gifts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Dan takes up Kwan's offer to spend Christmas with him.  
> Characters: Dan and Kwan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A sequel story to Opportunity Knocks (chapter 36 of Ghost Stories) and Snow (chapter 3 of 25 Days of Danny Phantom Christmas 2013).

"Sorry," Kwan mumbled as he glanced across the coffee table to where Dan sat. "I know this isn't what you probably eat traditionally for Christmas." He forced out a laugh. "Unless of course you follow in the footsteps of _A Christmas Story_."

Dan frowned, eying the remainder of the food before him with a wary eye. "Did I just eat a baby duck?"

Kwan bit his lip, snorted, tried to keep it together, but the laughter bubbled right out of him. When he could finally calm himself, he saw Dan frowning even more. "Sorry!" He had to hold his side as he waved his hand before him. "It's just the way you asked that was too funny." He coughed into his hand as he recovered. "I just meant that I cooked Chinese, and in the movie at the end, they go out to have their Christmas dinner at a Chinese restaurant. I promise no baby ducks were used to make this meal."

"Ah." Dan picked up his cup of eggnog and sipped from it. An awkward silence followed as carols played faintly in the background from Kwan's stereo. "So did you even stop by your family's place?"

Kwan shrugged as he dug his chopsticks into his bowl of rice. "I considered it, but," he glanced away, "well, I wanted to come back here and prepare dinner."

Dan reached over and managed to catch Kwan's chopsticks with his own before the man could pop the bite of rice into his mouth. "Is there any reason," his brow creased, "you didn't want to see _your_ family?"

Kwan stared with his mouth still open. Then he frowned, lowering his chopsticks along with Dan's. "My sister is," he hesitated, trying to ignore the intense stare Dan gave him, "kind of like the perfect daughter. She has a successful job. She has a perfect husband. Now they have a perfect little son. Meanwhile, I'm still studying for a career my parents don't think will amount to anything because it's not a lawyer like my sister or a doctor like they wanted me to be. Instead, I have a part time job at a tech store. I have no relationship or even remotely close to giving them more grandchildren."

"So," Dan said, setting down his chopsticks, "you don't want to go back because you feel inferior and like a failure in the eyes of your family?"

Kwan frowned, his eyes narrowing just slightly. "And why didn't you go to see your family? Why do you feel like you would be intruding if you went to share Christmas with them?"

Dan lifted his eyebrows. Maybe he had hit a nerve with that question. He hadn't meant to, but he could see the flash of anger just below the surface of Kwan's aqua green eyes. That was the thing he hated about Christmas. Arguments always came up. His parents - Danny's parents always had to get into that stupid debate about whether or not Santa was real. Even the things he recalled from Vlad's memories around the Christmas holiday weren't filled with great happiness. Dan sighed as he leaned back on his arms.

"I guess you could say," Dan gave it a bit of thought, "it's sort of like I'm adopted." It sort of felt like he was adopted by Danny's parents since they treated him like a son, even though he no longer felt like he had been their real son once. "And I guess it's still weird to visit them on Christmas since I'm not _really_ part of the family."

"Oh." Kwan blinked in surprise then drop his gaze in the image of guilt. "I didn't know. I'm sorry."

Dan shook his head. He didn't want to twist their otherwise nice Christmas into something depressing. "I guess we should exchange gifts."

Kwan climbed to his feet and walked over to the table in the corner of the room where he had a small potted tree with lights and decorations and a big silver star on top that acted as his Christmas tree. He picked up the box sitting beside it that was wrapped in pale blue paper with silvery snowflakes. Then he returned to where they shared their dinner and held out the present for Dan, who was surprised that the man actually did buy him something.

"It's not much." Kwan shrugged, turning his head away, but he glanced Dan's way out of the corner of his eye as he watched him unwrap the present.

Dan was hardly gentle in tearing the paper from the box it hid. It was a plain white box that gave him no clue about what might be inside it. Kwan wasn't the type to give him something mean, like when he lifted the lid, he would receive a pie to the face or something. The unknown still made him a bit cautious. Lifting the lid, he peeked inside then blinked in surprise.

"It's," Dan lifted the present from the box, "a robot dog?"

Kwan shrugged awkwardly. "Well, you said that you always wanted a puppy. But since the building doesn't allow pets, I thought this would be a good substitute." It did resemble a puppy, though it wasn't quiet as well made as some of the ones he had seen at stores. Still the thought was much appreciated.

"My gift isn't really much," Dan said as he got out the present. Setting it down on the table, he slid the small gift across it to the other man.

Kwan lifted an eyebrow as he picked up the box. "Went all out, did you?" The corner of his mouth twitched upward in a teasing grin. Then he ripped open the present in much the same manner as Dan and opened the box. He held up the tiny glass jar that was in the box. It was probably only slightly bigger than his thumbnail. "What?" He squinted at the jar. "Is that?"

"A snowflake? Yes, yes it is." Dan smirked at the surprise on the man's face. Then he shrugged casually like the gift was nothing special. "You got so excited about it when we saw the first snowfall together. So I thought I would preserve a snowflake. Now you can have a snowflake with you all year round."

Kwan stared at the jar in his hand for a quiet moment. Then he lifted his gaze to Dan. "I don't know what to say. This is," he shook his head at a loss for words, "amazing. Just, really amazing!"

"I'm just glad you liked it." Dan hunched up his shoulders and looked away, but he felt a small swell of pride for coming up with a gift idea that Kwan really liked.


	40. Washing Away the Hurt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Vlad is surprised when Danny turns up at his castle late one night.  
> Characters: Vlad and Danny

Vlad frowned as he knelt by the side of the tub, carefully rubbing the soap over the young man's bare back. His gaze flicked upward, staring only briefly at the bowed head that hadn't moved since he managed to direct the young man into the tub and get him to sit down in the white porcelain basin. The water had turned lukewarm while he worked on scrubbing the dirt and grime away. His frown deepened when he dumped water over his backside and stared at the flesh marred with cuts and bruises. Danny hadn't spoken a word since his arrival at the castle, and despite his efforts, Vlad had failed to pry out any information from him so far.

"You can stay here as long as you like," Vlad murmured softly, stopping in his work of cleaning the young half ghost's body to place a hand on Danny's shoulder and give it a comforting squeeze. "I'll be here for you whenever you feel like talking." Vlad picked up the shampoo bottle to wash the hair matted to the young man's head.

"I can't go back."

Danny's voice was small and fragile, making Vlad halt in the middle of lathering up the shampoo in the short raven locks. Vlad's breath caught in surprise, almost wondering if he had imagined the words. He wanted to demand to be told what happened, but he held his tongue, waiting for Danny to be ready to talk himself. The young half ghost's shoulders shook, and it took the billionaire a moment to realize that the shaking was caused by Danny's sobs, as quiet as they were.

"Everyone knows," Danny said in a trembling voice thick with emotion. "I got cornered by some street gang, and they started beating on me, and I felt weak each time their fists punched into me, each time their knives managed to catch me. But then I thought: I'm Danny Phantom. Why am I taking this from some punk humans?" He choked on a sob, lifting his hand from the water. His fingers were all wrinkly, but Danny didn't pay attention to that as he wiped at his eyes. "I attacked them back. I hit them with energy balls and ecto rays. I tried not to do any major harm, but they didn't really seem to care all that much if they ended up killing me. But everyone's going to know. They're going to tell everyone that they saw me transform into Danny Phantom. I can't go back. I had nowhere else to go." He twisted around in the tub, his eyes glistening with tears, all red and puffy. His hair was still coated in suds, some raven strands sticking to his forehead and cheeks. Desperation was in his eyes, pleading with Vlad not to turn him away.

Vlad knew their relationship had always been strained at best. He had never done much to gain the young man's trust. How could Danny ever trust him when he played the villain for so long, attempting to break up his family, steal away him and his mother while killing off his father? No, he certainly didn't deserve to have Danny turn to him now in his hour of need when he needed comfort and safety. But Danny had come to him anyway, perhaps in the desperation that he saw nowhere else he could go, but Vlad saw even that as the tiniest bit of hope that somewhere in the young half ghost, he trusted Vlad.

"You're going to be okay," Vlad told him in the most comforting tone he could muster. "I won't let anyone do any harm to you."

A moment of stillness passed. Then Danny suddenly lunged forward, wrapping his arms tightly around Vlad as he sobbed against the man's chest. Vlad ignored that his clothes were getting wet and soapy as the soaking teenager hugged him like a lifeline. Slowly, he circled his arms around Danny's body, and it would be a lie if he didn't have a brief shining moment of thinking he finally had the chance to be a father to a son he always wanted. This wasn't how he wanted Danny to come to him. Not broken and scared and desperate for safety that he would even run straight into his enemy's arms. But he would care for Danny like a son. Not with the thought that he would be a better father than Jack, but because Danny deserved a loving parent figure to care for him right now.


	41. Whispers of Discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: After the accident with the Proto Portal, Vlad is laid up in the hospital, and that is when things start getting weird for him.  
> Characters: Vlad and Skulker

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gothiethefairy on tumblr came up with this head canon for Vlad's ghost sense being that he can hear whispers of ghosts, like thoughts when they're near him, and I had to write something for it.

His eyes snapped open, staring at the drab tiled ceiling above him. The room was dark with only a faint light sneaking in through the crack under the door. Exhaustion clung to him, trying to draw him back to sleep after a long day of playing catch up with his college courses. The university allowed special treatment for him since his accident in the science lab when they were testing out the Proto Portal left him with a near deadly case of ecto acne. He had already been in the hospital for months, and his friends' visits had steadily grown less frequent as they busied themselves with their own classes and final exams coming up with the end of the school year. He would be taking his exams at a later time when someone from the university could be there to watch him while he took the exams in his hospital room. The doctors didn't want to release him even though the ecto acne had gone down, nearly fading away. He still had a few ugly pimples, but he expected them to go away soon enough.

It wasn't worries about his school work that woke him up in the middle of the night though. It wasn't even the haunting memory of ecto energy from the Proto Portal blasting into his face with horrible burning agony. It wasn't the thought that the ecto acne that resulted from the accident could have killed him.

It was the voices that woke him with a frightening chill. The whispers in his ears that he couldn't decipher. They spoke words, but it was a jumbled mess that didn't even sound like a known language. He strained, listening hard, trying to pick out a single voice, a single word, anything to help him understand what they were saying.

Vlad sat up in his hospital bed, which was rather uncomfortable and he couldn't wait for the day he was able to sleep in a real bed again. Gulping down the lump in his throat, his blue eyes glanced around the dark room, but he couldn't see anyone hiding there.

"H-Hello?" Vlad asked quietly, almost afraid he would get a response from the creepy whispers. The voices merely continued with their mumblings, and he realized how distant they sounded, like their voices were coming from far below him. How could he be hearing someone from a lower floor? His brow furrowed in thought. The hospital wouldn't allow people to be _that_ loud, especially when it was well past midnight.

Vlad tossed off his blanket and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. He was allowed to get up and walk around the hospital now that he was no longer in a critical condition. The doctors were still worried about him, since they had never encountered a case of ecto acne before, but Vlad was feeling, well, perfect. At least, he felt not much different from how he was prior to the accident. He slipped out of bed and crept toward the door of his hospital room. Being as quietly as he could, he opened the door, wincing when it squeaked a little. He glanced out the crack and into the bright hall that hurt his eyes. At the end of the hall was the nurse's station, which he would have to sneak past in order to reach the elevator. Patients weren't supposed to be allowed out of their rooms at night. They were supposed to be asleep because resting the body was important to healing.

But the whispering was driving him crazy. He _had_ to find the source of it, if for no other reason to satisfy his own curiosity. Ducking out of his room, he padded down the hall, keeping careful watch in case the nurse decided to get up and make a round of checking on the patients. He got to the corner of the hall and peeked around it to see the nurse sitting at the desk. She was on the heavy side but not enough to call her dangerously overweight. Her dark hair was tied back in a messy bun and wire framed glasses rested upon her nose as she tapped information into the computer. Nurse Laura Carver could be nice and friendly to everyone until she caught someone breaking the hospital rules. Then she could be downright scary. He did _not_ want to get on her bad side.

Vlad never wished more than he did now for the ability to turn invisible. If he could slip past Nurse Carver unseen, he wouldn't have to worry about her wrath later. He waited, watching for the perfect opportunity. When the phone rang, Nurse Carver turned around in her chair and went to answer it. Her back was toward the elevators. If he didn't go now, he doubted he would get a second chance. Vlad ducked low so that he would be well hidden behind the desk and crept as quickly and quietly toward the elevators as possible. He reached them without incident and hit the down button, casting a glance over his shoulder at the nurse's station. Nurse Carver, however, seemed too absorbed in the phone call to notice when the elevator doors opened, much to Vlad's relief.

Once inside the elevator, Vlad stared at the numbers on the side, not even knowing which one to push. He couldn't check all the floors. That would take too long, and he would be caught before he ever found out anything about the eerie whispers he was hearing. He closed his eyes and concentrated, listening to the voices and hoping they would give him a hint of where to go.

... _tnemesab ... in the morgue_ ...

Vlad pushed the button for the floor where the morgue was located, and he shivered. What were the voices doing in the morgue? And why could he hear them all the way up on the fifth floor of the hospital? He rubbed at his forehead as he watched the numbers light up above the door. With each floor he passed, the voices grew louder. Some sounded vaguely like normal English. The others - Vlad wasn't even sure that was an actual language they spoke.

When the doors opened, it almost hurt because the voices were practically screaming in his head. Vlad clapped his hands over his ears, but it did nothing to help drown out the noise. He pushed hesitantly into the morgue and had to draw his hands away from his ears so that he could hug his arms around his body. He felt like he just walked into a freezer, his teeth chattering and his body shivering. His gaze drifted around the room, relieved to find that no dead bodies were left out on the tables, though that wouldn't have been very professional of them. No one else was there. He was alone, in a freezing morgue, with voices still pounding in his head.

Maybe he had lost his mind in the accident. Maybe that burst of ecto energy from the Proto Portal disconnected the wiring in his head and now he was hearing things that weren't even there. Turning away, he started to head for the exit of the morgue when movement caught his eye. He froze, breath catching in his throat. His eyes slowly turned to where he saw the movement, and-

A scream nearly ripped from his throat. He slapped his hands over his mouth as his eyes grew impossibly wide. Floating off to his side was something small and green and vaguely blob like, with little arms and legs.

"It came this way. I'm sure of it!" the blob muttered to itself.

Or was that in Vlad's head? He wasn't entirely sure. But... That was a ghost, wasn't it? He admitted it wasn't exactly how he always imagined a ghost to look. But he could see through it somewhat. Tentatively, Vlad reached out and poked a finger at the blob. It jolted when his finger pushed into the gooey green substance that made it up.

"Hey! Watch where you're poking that thing!" it shouted angrily, shaking a fist at him and narrowing its red eyes. "I don't go poking at you, do I, meat bag?"

Vlad's mouth slowly dropped. "You _are_ a ghost!"

The ghost snorted. "I guess some meat bags _do_ have brains after all." It folded its little arms. "Now if you don't mind, I have a hunt to continue. If," it looked around the morgue, "I could just find where it ran off to."

Vlad reached up, raking a hand through his silver hair that had started to grow out from the mullet look a bit. The silver hair was an unfortunate side effect from the Proto Portal incident. His hair used to be raven, just like Jack's, but the blast of ecto energy seemed to have drained his hair of its natural color pigment.

"I don't understand. I _heard_ you." Vlad shook his head in disbelief. "I was up on the fifth floor, and I could hear you. Why can I hear ghosts?"

The red eyes snapped back toward him, curiosity sparking in them. "Never heard of a meat bag with that ability. Seems more like something a ghost would have. You know, to sense if there are other ghosts present."

"But I'm not a ghost!"

The blob shrugged. "Really not my problem. Sorry, kid. I gotta go. My prey is getting away." The ghost turned to fly away.

"Wait!" Vlad shouted, reaching out to grab the ghost before it got away when something pink flew from his hand, soared past the ghost, and slammed into the wall leaving a black scorch mark by the door of the morgue. The ghost halted and Vlad froze, pink steam rising from his still outstretched hand.

The ghost slowly turned back to him with its red eyes wide. "How did you do that, meat bag?"

Vlad swallowed thickly, fear making his heart pump faster as the blood ran cold in his veins. "I - I don't know." His breath quickened, and it felt something like a panic attack was coming. "I just - _I don't know_!"

The ghost was studying him like it had just stumbled onto something fascinating. "Maybe I'll stick around after all. You seem interesting. For a meat bag."

Vlad forgot his panic for a moment as he glared at the ghost. "I have a name. It's Vlad! Vlad Masters."

"Well, _Vlad_ ," the ghost snorted, "I'm known as the greatest hunter in all of the Ghost Zone. You can call me Skulker."


	42. Mending the Broken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Danny comes up against a strong enemy, and the last person he ever expected comes to his rescue.  
> Characters: Dan and Danny

Danny dodged as the monstrous ghost's claws swiped at him. His jumpsuit was already torn in places, green blood oozing from his injuries. His breaths were labored, and exhaustion was creeping up on him. Yet he had barely made a dent the ghost with all of his attacks. He fired off blasts of ecto energy all while avoiding being carved open like a Christmas turkey by those claws. The ghost batted his attacks away like they were nothing more than bees flying about to its great annoyance.

With a growl, Danny charged another attack, pouring most of what remained of his energy into the ecto ball. He let the attack fly, flinging it at the ghost with deadly accuracy. It struck exactly where he meant it to: right in the ghost's eyes. But that only seemed to anger the ghost. Its paw slammed into Danny's chest, sending the half ghost crashing into the wall of a nearby building. Danny gasped, the air knocked right out of him on impact. Then he collapsed to the ground, every part of his body burning in agony. When he tried to get back to his feet, he merely crumpled to the ground again, his energy spent in the battle.

Danny lifted his head with great effort and a groan of pain. His eyes widened as his heart jumped into his throat, lodging there as panic squeezed him. The ghost had taken aim, and the sharp point of its barbed tail screamed through the air, heading straight for him. But Danny didn't have the energy to defend him, or even move to roll out of the way before the tail speared through him.

It happened in slow motion, Danny's breath stopping as he waited for the end to come and the pain to start. So close. It was a foot from him, the inches being eating away. The point halted suddenly, a mere few inches from his face, the tip gleaming and dripping with a substance that glowed faintly red. Danny gasped out a shaky breath, hardly believing that he had escaped death. Then his gaze lifted to what caused the ghost to stop its attack.

"D-Dan!" Danny thought for sure his eyes were deceiving him at the sight of the cape whipping behind the ghost with fiery white hair. How was Dan even here? Wasn't he supposed to be trapped in the Thermos? Wasn't Clockwork supposed to be watching him? Why was he stopping the ghost's attack? Questions swam within his head, making him feel even dizzier.

"Kind of busy at the moment," Dan grunted in his effort to keep the tail at bay. With a growl, he managed to twist the tail, overturning the monstrous ghost that looked like it had escaped from a Greek myth. The manticore like ghost hit the ground with enough force that Danny could feel the shaking in his bones. "Well," Dan cracked his knuckles, and though his back was to him, Danny suspected his evil future was smirking, "I've been looking for a decent opponent to fight."

Danny watched in stunned silence as Dan faced off against the manticore ghost. Dan was fast, but his attacks were only a little more effective against the ghost than Danny's own. Dan dodged, jumping to the side just before the manitcore's tail could stab through him. The sharp point pierced into the street, cracking the pavement. Then it tugged, but its tail seemed firmly stuck in the street. Dan chuckled at the ghost's predicament. The manticore snapped its head toward him, snarling before it released an angry roar. Dan walked up to it, standing easily within range for the ghost to chomp him. He braced his legs, his arms pressed to his sides, and Danny knew what his evil future had planned before he did it.

Dan opened his mouth and released a wave of eerie noise that had the manticore whimpering as it tried to withstand the force of the Ghostly Wail. It couldn't and crashed back into the buildings behind it. Two barbs of its tail remained firmly implanted in the street as bright red blood splattered everywhere. Dan dropped to a knee, breathing heavily after expelling such a great amount of his power. Not wanting to tangle again with Dan, the manticore managed to pick itself up then bound away down the street, leaving a trail of blood from its severed tail.

"We have to sto-" Danny insisted as he launched to his feet, but the world swam before him. He started to fall, feeling too woozy and dizzy to even keep on his own two feet. His eyes slipped shut before he could even hit the ground.

Danny was out for quite some time, though he wasn't sure for how long exactly. It could have been a few hours, but it just as easily could have been a few days. He spent up a lot of his energy fighting that manticore ghost, more than he usually spent. Unless he was fighting someone of Pariah Dark's caliber. Vlad was a close second after him, because Vlad was smart and cunning, but they hadn't fought against each other in quite a while now. Someone was talking, and Danny struggled to open his eyes, which felt glued shut at the moment.

"I don't even have to try to kill you," the person muttered. "If I just leave you to it, you'll do the job yourself the way you're going."

"Dan?" He managed to crack his eyes open, just barely, but the world was a blurry mess before him. At least, Danny could be thankful that it was dim enough wherever they were that he didn't suffer a blinding headache by being assaulted by bright lights.

"So you finally woke up." Dan snorted.

The memories of the events leading up to when he passed out flashed before his eyes. Danny sat up with a surge of panic. Then he winced, hissing and groaning as every ache and pain in his body seemed to be set afire from the sudden movement. It took a moment before he realized something. His fingers skimmed over the bandages wrapped around his chest, marveling over them like they were made of fine silk. He lifted his head and stared in shock at the grumpy ghost, who seemed eager to pretend that Danny wasn't even there.

"What - I don't understand." Danny shook his head then immediately regretted the action. Placing a hand to his head, he tried to puzzle out Dan's plan. "Why did you help me back there? Why did you take care of me? You could have just let that ghost finish me off."

"Like I was going to let some lame ghost finish you off instead." Dan got up, and that was when Danny noticed the bowl full of towels coated in green blood. _His_ blood.

Danny's brow furrowed as he watched Dan leave the room. He didn't believe his evil future would go through all this trouble just to keep some other ghost from killing him so that he could kill him at a later time. Why bother tending to his injuries? Dan could have taken the opportunity to crush him while he was weak, while he was unconscious. Alone for the moment, Danny let his gaze wander around his surroundings, taking in the sight of the room for the first time. He nearly jumped out of the bed when he came to the startling realization that it looked like his room. His room back at his parents' house. But he knew it wasn't. One glance out the window with the dreary green sky told him they were definitely in the Ghost Zone.

Something cold nudged against his cheek, and Danny jerked his head around to find a blob of a ghost somewhat resembling a cat pushing its head against him. Danny had to smile as he patted the cat blob's head. He had seen ghosts like this one in the past when he visited the Ghost Zone. They were so low level though that he could never sense them, but as they were harmless, he saw no reason to worry about them escaping into the real world and having to chase them back into the Ghost Zone. They generally gathered around ghosts that - what had Skulker said to him that one time? - radiated with a pure soul.

"Go away already!" Dan complained, swatting at another blob ghost, this one with no recognizable form, that was circling around his head. He grumbled as he returned to where he had been sitting by the bed. "Stupid things have been gathering here ever since I brought you here." He scowled at Danny, but there didn't seem to be much heat to his glare. "You and your stupid noble goodness are like a beacon for these stupid things."

"They're not causing any harm." Danny frowned as the kitty blob curled up in his lap, seeming content. "How long have you been out of your Thermos? Why hasn't Clockwork locked you up again? He never told me you escaped! And why exactly does this place look like my bedroom?"

Dan rolled red eyes, annoyance and boredom mixing in his expression. "I was out of that Thermos within a year. I don't know about Clockwork, but he doesn't bother meddling unless he thinks it's important enough to meddle with." His mouth spread in a cruel smirk. "Which means he knew I was going to escape and didn't care."

Danny gulped at that news and tried not to shiver. Why would Clockwork allow Dan to escape? He eyed his evil future, though right now, Dan didn't exactly _seem_ evil to him. Then again, Danny almost wanted to laugh as the other blob ghost nested in the fiery hair. It was hard to _look_ evil with a cute little blob ghost on his head.

"As for the room," Dan grumbled with a huff, "when I started setting up my own domain, it just started to form like this."

Danny nodded then the words really registered in his mind. "Wait. Your domain?"

"Yeah. Got a problem with that?" Dan glared, red eyes narrowing dangerously.

"No, no!" Danny raised his arms in surrender. "I'm just... surprised. That's all." He shifted awkwardly in the bed, and the kitty blob mewed in protest of the movement.

Dan dropped his chin into his hand and glared off to the side. "I don't know why exactly your room appeared. My domain started off small, but it steadily grew over the past few years. Now it's some weird mash up of Fenton Works and Vlad's castle." His shoulders hunched up in a shrug. "I guess it's just as messed up as I am. Fitting, I guess."

Danny's eyes swept around the room again, finding it odd being in a room identical to his own. "I guess it makes some sort of sense," he mumbled thoughtfully. "If a ghost's domain is a reflection of their obsession, or what they feel like is their home, you have two halves of you warring with each other for what would feel like home to you." He had to admit that he was relieved that Dan's domain didn't reflect some obsession with killing him and destroying the world. Maybe there was something to that, though Danny wasn't really sure what to make of it.

Dan huffed but wouldn't look at the half ghost still sitting in the bed. Danny stared at him, studying his expression. His evil future seemed guarded about something. The whole situation was strange though. Here they were: Danny freshly patched up after a fight and Dan seated beside him like he was a visitor in a hospital. They were getting along, or at least what could be considered getting along for who they were. Danny lowered his gaze, scratching at one of the kitty blob's ears.

"Dan, do you want to be friends?"

Dan's head snapped toward him so fast that Danny almost thought it spun all the way around. He had done the whole exorcist head spin before, after all. Dan stared at him with wide eyes and his mouth almost dropping open in shock. "Why would you think something like that?" he spat out, twisting his expression into something ugly.

Danny shrugged, feeling perhaps a little silly for asking the question. "Well, you haven't exactly tried to kill me. And you've had opportunities if you've been out of that Thermos for almost three years." Staring at Dan, he frowned. "If you want to be friends, I - I wouldn't mind." He almost couldn't believe his own words. He wanted to be friends with _Dan_? But Dan wasn't exactly acting like a homicidal maniac at the moment.

"You would be friends with me?" Dan's brow knitted, confusion in his red eyes. "After everything I've done?"

"People, even ghosts, can change. Sometimes, all you need is a second chance." Danny held out a bandaged hand. "Or can you think of a better reason for why you bothered to take care of my injuries?"

Dan looked away again. "Don't expect me to go running around like some stupid superhero sidekick."

Danny laughed, though it hurt his ribs. "Of course not."


	43. Midnight Visitor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: When he's woken up in the middle of the night, Danny finds a surprising guest in his shop.  
> Characters: Danny and Phantom

Danny crept along the dark hall, his hands gripping the baseball bat so tightly that his knuckles ached. His throat felt dry, and he nearly jumped when he heard the noise again. He was closer to the door now, and he could hear the clink of metal, the banging of something being tossed aside, and the mutters of curses. Swallowing thickly, he steeled his nerves as he removed one hand from the bat to grip the doorknob. He tried to be as quiet as possible, twisting the doorknob and pulling open the door.

His bright blue eyes blinked in surprise when he peered into the room. It was a storage area for spare parts and replacement pieces for his shop. But he didn't expect to find someone sitting on the floor and grumbling as he tried to fix the wiring in his leg. He supposed it was considered incorrect to label him as "someone." To most others, robots were just things that resembled a human. Or anything really. He had seen a few dogs and cats that were so remarkably lifelike that he almost couldn't tell the difference. Robotics had advanced so much that he would have mistaken the man sitting in his storage room as a real human if it weren't for the fact that he had disconnected one of his legs to fiddle around with the wiring.

They were about the same age, Danny realized. Or, at the very least, the robot appeared to be his age, but Danny couldn't remember seeing one like him before. His hair was snowy white, hanging down in his eyes as he bowed his head while he worked, and his skin was pale like alabaster.

Danny leaned the bat against the wall as he opened the door even wider. When he heard someone rummaging about in his storage room, he thought he had a thief to worry about. Good parts for robots could fetch a pretty price on the black market, so Danny was always wary of thieves coming in the night. The floor creaked under his foot as he stepped into the room. The robot heard, his head immediately snapping upward, and his bright, almost glowing, green eyes locked with Danny's. For a moment, silence hung heavily in the air around them. Then the robot scrambled for a screwdriver and held it between them like a weapon. With one leg detached, he couldn't really get far if he tried to run.

Danny held up his hands to show he meant no harm. "I'm not going to hurt you," he said, slowly taking another step forward. He knew that the robot couldn't really do anything against him. After all, they were programmed not to harm humans. At least, they were supposed to be. Sometimes, they had a few rogue engineers that put together robots without that little program detail, and the robots sometimes got out of control. Danny frowned when he thought about those poor robots that he would have to dismantle because some idiot couldn't figure out how to properly program the AI.

The robot before him wore a frown, his brow creasing just slightly in a remarkably human expression. It was just proof of how amazing the work in robotics had come if they could create such lifelike emotions on a robot's face. "I just need to fix my leg," the robot explained, still keeping the screwdriver raised between them. "Then I'll leave."

Danny was close enough now that he was able to bend down, wrap his hand around the ankle of the leg, and pick it up before the robot could even protest. He turned the leg upright so that he could stare into the mess of wires and cybernetics in the thigh. A frown pulled tight across his face. The robot looked like a semi new model, even if it was one he wasn't familiar with, but the robot had chosen outdated replacements.

"This won't work." Danny shook his head, ripping out the wires and parts that were outdated. The robot shouted in protest, but Danny ignored him. "You'll just break down again in a matter of months and have to repair yourself again. If you don't end up exploding because you didn't know what you were doing." He could tell the robot had some idea of how to fix his leg, but it was as if he was working from manuals that were ten or twenty years old. He lifted his gaze to the robot and quirked up one eyebrow. "Did you try 'fixing' any other parts of yourself?"

Danny whistled in appreciation of the robot's creator's skill when the robot managed to bring a blush to his face, but what made it surprising to witness was the splash of green coloring his cheeks. The robot glanced around hesitantly before reaching behind him. He tugged off the simple black shirt he wore then balled it up in his hands. Curiously, Danny walked around the robot, and his frown returned as he stared at the open section in the robot's back where the skin didn't extend. He crouched down, setting the leg on the floor as he examined the robot's back.

"Hm, this is going to take a lot of work," Danny mumbled, talking to himself.

"I don't have anything to pay you with," the robot explained. "But I can get it for you. Once I'm all fixed up, someone will hire me. I can give you whatever I make in return."

Danny scratched under his chin as he gave it some consideration while studying the robot's inner workings. "No," he said and shook his head. "I think I could use some help in the shop, if you're interested, but you'd have to update that ancient manual on robotics first. I can't have you fumbling around like you've done to yourself."

The robot twisted his head around, green eyes widening in surprise. "You would hire me after I broke into your store?"

Danny flicked his gaze over the robot. "Well, you could have just come in like any other customer." He shrugged. "But I suggest that you don't do something like this again. Other people might not be so understanding."

There were plenty of abandoned robots, tossed out for newer models, that roamed around looking for work so that they could keep themselves in working order. He grimaced as he remembered the number of times he came across poor robots that had degraded to the point of just collapsing in alleyways because they couldn't afford replacements to broken pieces. Other robot maintenance shops like his would kick out any robots that couldn't pay up front, and most of those shops were grossly overpriced.

"Do you have a name?" Danny asked as he got to work repairing the robot, who was silent for quite some time.

"No name found in my database."

Danny blinked in surprise, his hands halting for a brief moment before getting back to work. "Your owner or creator never gave you a name? Anything to designate you?"

Another pause followed as the robot ran through the network of information within its brain. "No owner found. Creator unknown. Last file named: Phantom Project."

Danny shivered at the eerie tone that the robot's voice had taken as it read back its findings. He hated when they did that because it made them seem less human, just a machine vomiting back whatever information was programmed into it. "Phantom Project, eh? I don't know very much about that, but Phantom sounds like a pretty good name. You sure tried to sneak in here like a Phantom. What do you think?" He finished work on the backside and picked up the leg again. "How do you like the name Phantom?" He moved to sit in front of the robot, and he watched as the little lights flickered through the green eyes.

"Yes," the robot said as his eyes returned to normal, "Phantom is an acceptable name."

Danny grinned. "Good! Then welcome aboard, Phantom."

Phantom blinked a few times, like he was adjusting to the new name. Then his mouth pulled into a smile. "Thank you for accepting me."


	44. Hot Chocolate Breaks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The holidays is a time of joy and family, but sometimes, it brings with it the holiday blues.  
> Characters: Vlad x Danny

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a Christmas gift for Ghost Chicky and set in her Immortal Husbands AU.

Vlad adjusted the microscope to better see the sample he was currently examining. When he turned to write down his findings in his journal, he heard a light rap upon the doorframe. Twisting around in his chair, he blinked when he saw Sheila standing in the doorway.

"Did you need something?" Vlad pulled off his glasses then set them down on top of his journal.

"You have a visitor waiting for you," Sheila announced with a slight flush upon her cheeks.

Vlad didn't even need to guess to know who the "visitor" was. With a sigh, he stood and walked toward the door. "Thank you, Sheila." He tilted his head down in a small bow as he passed her on his way out of the laboratory. When he reached the end of the hall, he found Danny standing there with his arms behind his back as he glanced around at everything in the waiting area. "Didn't I tell you that I would be working late tonight?"

Danny glanced over to him. His mouth widened into a smile. "I know. But you've worked late every night for the past week." He released an exasperated sigh. "I'm already asleep when you come home, and you're gone in the morning before I wake up."

"This is a very important research project. I can't help that I need to devote a lot of my time to it."

"I know. I just thought," Danny brought his arms around to the front to show a paper bag and a cup holder with two to-go cups, "you might take just a little teeny tiny break." He gave a wince smile with hope in his eyes.

Vlad frowned a touch. He still had a lot of work to do on his project. "I guess a small break wouldn't hurt," he finally said, a small smile curling upon his own face when Danny's eyes lit up with excitement. He took the cup holder from Danny. "Let's take this somewhere a little nicer."

"I'm not being a bother though, right?" Danny winced slightly as he followed along beside Vlad. "I know you're super busy, and I don't want to be in the way. But I-" He shrugged with an oddly helpless look on his face. "I guess I've been feeling lonely, which I know is kind of silly, but we keep seeming to miss each other and haven't really gotten to say more than a few words to each other before one or the other has to go, and-"

Vlad stopped him with a light kiss on the cheek, which brought an adorable flush of color onto the younger half ghost's face. "I know, and I'm sorry." He opened a door onto the roof terrace of the building. "I'll try to be a bit better about not letting this project consume every second of my day." He walked over to a bench and took a seat.

"This is a pretty nice place." Danny sat down next to him, his blue eyes gazing around the terrace.

Vlad smiled as he took one of the cups from the holder. It was indeed a pretty and nice spot to sit for a while. They had plants with bushes and flowers, though right now the plants were covered in a light dusting of a snow. The night was a little chilly, but they would go back inside before they started to freeze. Right now, they had the place all to themselves, and Vlad believed Danny was looking for a little alone time for them, so this spot worked well.

"As you said, sometimes we needed a small break from working. You should see it in the spring when the flowers are in bloom." Vlad sipped from the cup and blinked in surprise when he found it wasn't coffee like he expected. "Hot chocolate?" He glanced toward Danny.

"And roasted chestnuts." Danny held out the opened bag with an impish grin. "Tis the season and all." His grin faltered slightly. "You didn't forget, did you? The Christmas Truce party is next week. We haven't missed one in decades!"

Vlad chuckled into his hot chocolate. "No, I haven't forgotten. I may have been a little obsessed with my project, but I didn't forget about the Truce party. We will definitely be attending it."

"Good. Because if you had forgotten, I would have dragged you out of that lab to go to it."

"It wouldn't be the first time if you did." The corner of Vlad's mouth curled upward when he remembered the last time, a decade or so ago, when he was so obsessed with work that he completely forgot it was the night of the Truce party. Danny had stormed into his laboratory and basically kidnapped him so they would make it to the Truce party. After that, Vlad was a bit more careful about remembering the Truce party, even keeping a little note in his journal to help remind him. "I promise I will be better about being obsessed with my work."

"You can promise, but I know you'll just get obsessed with it again and spend all your time working." Danny smiled, a small one, as he sipped his own hot chocolate. "But it's okay. We have forever together. So I shouldn't get all clingy about you working so much when you find a project that really interests you. I guess it's just the time of year." He frowned, his gaze going distant. "I just remember spending this time with family and friends who are now long gone, and it just hurts thinking about them and then being all alone."

Vlad frowned, staring down at his cup of hot chocolate. "I guess that's why I find it so easy to bury myself in work around this time of year. It makes for a good distraction from things I would rather not think about. You hear people saying they wish they could live forever. I don't think they stop to consider how much it hurts to outlive everyone you care about. Sometimes it seems easier to just not make any connections with the people where we live and work because eventually we'll have to leave them behind or watch them die."

Danny nodded solemnly. His hand found Vlad's, and their fingers laced together. "But that's kind of why the Truce party is important," he mumbled, his lips brushing over the back of Vlad's hand. "The other ghosts have become like family too, and we never have to worry about losing any of them."

Vlad freed his hand then wrapped his arm around Danny's shoulders and drew him closer. "I can't say I like all of them, but it is nice that there are some friends we can count on to keep forever." He leaned his head in toward Danny. "I'm sorry for letting my own means of distraction leave you to deal with your pain alone."

Danny bumped their foreheads together then shook his head. "Don't worry about it." He kissed Vlad on the lips. "After all these years, you'd think I wouldn't get so down about stuff."

"I would begin to worry if you acted like it doesn't bother you." Vlad ran his thumb over the back of Danny's neck as he stared into his eyes. "You were never really good at hiding your emotions."

Danny cracked a smile. "Because you were a master of concealing your feelings."

Vlad rolled his eyes, and they spent the rest of his break enjoying each other's company and warmth as they drank their hot chocolate and snacked on the roasted chestnuts.


	45. Christmas Traditions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One Christmas tradition in the Fenton house isn't a big hit with the man Danny brought home with him.  
> Characters: Dan x Danny; and Jazz

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A Christmas gift for fastpacedfreefall.

"I really hate you right now."

Danny struggled, but it was impossible to keep the smirk off his face. How could he not grin when Dan was currently dressed in a hideous Christmas sweater? He had little choice in the matter. The sweater came from Danny's father's collection. The moment they entered the house, his father was all too happy to shove them into Christmas sweaters as he rambled on about all the latest stuff they had worked on recently. Dan's sweater had festive little ghosts on it that were wearing Santa hats while they floated around a Christmas tree with lights that actually blinked. Danny didn't escape having to wear an embarrassing sweater with his "Santa Paws" one featuring a cat in an elf costume.

"Oh, come on," Danny said with a hint of teasing in his voice as he nudged Dan with an elbow. "Everyone has to wear dorky sweaters at Christmas time. It's basically mandatory. And hey, it's only for a few days while we're here. I think you can survive it."

"Are you sure about that?" Dan frowned at him. "This might bring out my homicidal tendencies."

Danny glared, his eyes flashing briefly in warning. "I suggest you learn a way to suppress those tendencies, or you'll be spending Christmas back in the Thermos."

Dan cringed. "You wouldn't."

"I would."

Their glaring match was interrupted when Jazz appeared between them. She threw her arms over their shoulders, drawing them down and closer to her. Over the years, Danny had finally surpassed his sister in height, a point that made him feel rather smug.

"I hope you two aren't getting into some sort of lover's spat," Jazz said quietly with a forced smile on her face. "Because we get enough arguing whenever Mom and Dad decide to bring up the Santa issue. And I will not have two couples fighting with each other during Christmas."

"It's not a fight," Danny assured her. "Dan just has no appreciation for terrible Christmas sweaters."

"How can you not want to rip this thing off," Dan tugged at the hem of his sweater, "and want to burn it?"

Danny shrugged. "I guess after having to deal with them all my life, I'm just used to it. It doesn't really bother me all that much."

"Now," Jazz added with a tiny smirk. "You were always such a grumpy Gus when we were growing up."

"Can you blame me when Mom and Dad were always ruining Christmas?" Danny huffed.

"Please tell me there's a photo album somewhere around here," Dan said with an eager look in his eyes.

Danny had to stare at Dan, just to take in his appearance. Since they would be staying at his parents' house for a few days for Christmas, they had to fix up the way Dan looked a bit. For one, his parents would have a million questions if they saw Dan's red eyes. Now they were blue, but they looked weird to Danny. He preferred Dan the way he naturally looked, but he guessed for the sake of a peaceful, or relatively peaceful, Christmas he would just have to deal with Dan not looking like the real Dan.

"Dinner's ready," his mother announced from the kitchen, and Danny's stomach gave a happy growl. He was starving after the long drive to his parents' house.

"Maybe after dinner we can hunt down those photo albums," Jazz offered, patting Dan on the arm. With a smile, she headed down the hall toward the kitchen.

"Ugh," Danny groaned. "Not the photo albums! You've already seen enough of my embarrassing moments."

"And I love when you get all blushy." Dan grinned as a light flush of color crept onto Danny's cheeks. "You just look so cute when you get all embarrassed." He placed a hand on Danny's hip and tugged him closer. "It makes wearing this dumb sweater worth it."

Danny tilted his head up as Dan leaned down, and their lips brushed against each other in a brief kiss. He smiled, perhaps a little too giddily, when Dan pulled away. "Okay. Okay." He turned the other man toward the kitchen. "We better get in there before my parents think they need to send out a search party to get us." He guessed he could suffer through a few embarrassments for Dan.


	46. Pleasantly Unexpected

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Last minute Christmas shopping leads to an unexpectedly pleasant encounter.  
> Characters: Dash x Danny

It was well past midnight, and to be honest, he didn't expect the store to be open. But he had the usual family Christmas thing to attend, and he was supposed to arrive at his parents' house around nine in the morning. Unfortunately, work had kept him rather busy over the past few weeks, and now he had a short period of time to pick up some presents. Currently, he was struggling with a gift idea for his sister-in-law and his nephew. He had only met them a few times, and he mostly only knew that they loved books. Half a laugh escaped him as he pushed open the door and stepped inside the bookstore.

He gave his blond hair a little ruffle, brushing off the snowflakes that had gathered during his walk. The bookstore was nice and warm, with a homey feeling to it, being a smaller store rather than one of the big brand name stores. He hoped he would be able to find something to give his sister-in-law and his nephew quickly so he could go back to his apartment and get a few hours of rest before he had to make the drive to his parents' house.

"I highly recommend it."

Dash turned his head when he heard someone speak. Near the checkout counter, a tall man stood with two young women. A friendly smile stretched across the man's face, and his blue eyes twinkled with enthusiasm behind his thick framed glasses. The burgundy apron he wore told Dash the man was an employee of the bookstore. Shoving his hands into his coat pockets, Dash wandered toward an aisle to peruse their selection.

The two women thanked the employee minutes later, and Dash assumed they must have bought whatever the man had encouraged them to buy. After a few more minutes of searching, he growled in frustration. He wanted to be at home in bed right now. Some years, he just wanted to skip over the whole Christmas holiday. At least Kwan had insisted on no gift giving, knowing his friend was already stressed enough with meeting his deadline.

"Might I be of some assistance?"

Dash glanced to his left to see the employee waiting patiently. Obviously, he had no other customers to help. Dash tore his gaze away before he was caught staring too long. The employee looked like the type of guy Dash would have pushed around during his high school years.

"I'm just looking for a few things," Dash grumbled.

"Um," the man continued to smile though he seemed to sweat slightly, "anything in particular?"

Dash sighed as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I need gifts for some relatives. They like books." He shrugged.

"Do you know what sort of books they like?"

Dash resisted the urge to groan at all the questions. He knew the man was simply doing his job to help customers, but it was frustrating since he didn't know what exactly they would like. "Well, my sister-in-law really likes cooking stuff, I think."

"You think?" The man raised his eyebrow in curiosity.

Dash frowned. He shouldn't find that slight confusion in the man's expression cute. "I don't spend a lot of time with them, so I don't know a whole lot about their likes and dislikes."

"Ah." The man nodded. "Well, we have some cookbooks over here." He walked toward a different aisle. "You said they. Is there another person you're looking for?"

Dash bobbed his head. "I have a nephew too. He's only nine, so I guess something kid appropriate."

"Oh!" The man smiled, and Dash actually glanced toward his nametag to see what to call him. Daniel was the name engraved onto the little white tag. "I might have the perfect thing. You look at the cookbooks, and I'll go get it."

Dash watched as Daniel - Ugh, that sounded too formal - disappeared, his gaze absently drifting downward. He snapped his head around, his cheeks burning with a blush. What was wrong with him? Dash forced himself to scan through the cookbooks for one to get his sister-in-law. He wasn't supposed to start eying the random employee at the local bookstore. But he could hear his friend's voice whispering to him, "You can't deny he's cute." He pinched the bridge of his nose. So what if the employee was cute?

"I bet your nephew would love this!" Daniel announced as he returned. Wearing a proud smile, he held out a comic book to Dash.

For a moment, silence passed between them as Dash stared at the comic book in the man's hands. "Wow. Um-" He wasn't sure what to say during this awkward moment.

Daniel's expression fell. "Your nephew isn't into comic books?"

Dash shook his head, an amused smile creeping onto his face. "That's not it. This." He took the comic from Daniel and held it up. "This is my comic." He tapped where his name Dash Baxter was written.

Daniel blinked then his eyes bugged out of their sockets. "You're THE Dash Baxter?" His mouth hung open in shock, and Dash bit the inside of his cheek, unable to squash back the thought of how cute the man looked with awe in his eyes. It was the kind of expression he imagined a child would wear when meeting his hero, though that seemed a little silly. Dash merely a comic book artist. "I can't believe it!" Daniel managed to speak again. "I've been reading your stuff since your very first comic came out." He flushed, glancing away in embarrassment. "I tell people about your comics every time a new one gets released."

"Really?" Dash looked away before the employee's excitement put ideas in his head. He didn't usually get feelings for someone he just met. Kwan would tell him he spent too much time locked up in his apartment working on the next comic so he could meet his deadline. But that wasn't entirely his fault. Dash couldn't put off his work. If he did, then they wouldn't be able to get the next issue of his comic out on time. He hated to disappoint his fans.

"Ah, yeah." Daniel flushed lightly with a small bob of his head. "When I first started reading your comic, it kind of inspired me to try my hand at drawing a comic myself. It's not that good. My art isn't anywhere near as good as yours."

Dash honestly didn't know how to respond to that. He knew his comic was pretty popular, but he never heard anyone tell them they were inspired enough to draw a comic themselves after reading his comic. "It might be better than you think. Like people say sometimes: we're our own worst critics."

A beat of silence passed between them. "Oh!" Daniel grabbed his hand. "I have a sketchbook here. I, uh, sometimes doodle for practice when there are slow periods. And this late at night, there's usually not a huge rush of people." He pulled Dash along toward the checkout counter. Once they reached it, he released his hold on Dash and walked around behind the counter. He disappeared for a moment when he crouched down then sprung back up to lay a sketchbook down between them. "I," Daniel shifted nervously, "won't be offended if you laugh."

"Laughing would be rude." Dash twisted the sketchbook around and flipped it open to the first bag. He nearly did laugh, but not because he thought the art was bad. The sketch on the first page amused him. It was of a bat with a woman's head, kind of cartoony, but not too bad artistically. He could tell it was an early sketch though. As he flipped through the pages, he could see a gradual, though slow, improvement.

"So?" Daniel asked after a long silence had passed between them.

Dash lifted his head and gulped when he realized Daniel was leaning on the counter and their heads were fairly close to each other. "It's actually pretty good. But you're a bit stiff." He pointed at the sketch on the current page. "You can tell that you were forcing some of these lines, and some of them look too angular when they should be smoother and more curved. Here. Let me show you." He searched out a clean page. "Um." He curled his fingers in a grabbing motion as he glanced around the counter for something with which to draw.

Daniel hunted down a pencil then handed it to him. Dash offered a small smile when he accepted the pencil. Then he focused on doodling up something similar to Daniel's original drawing. It wasn't anything big or special, just a simple drawing of a young woman that had long flowing hair and wore a sundress. As he worked, he could hear Daniel's little gasps of awe, which made him feel slightly self conscious.

"You see how different it feels when you let the lines flow a bit more?"

"You did that in, like, two seconds!"

Dash shrugged, fighting back a small blush. He was used to doodling things on the fly, so he had gotten fairly quick at it. "Oh, hey. Do you prefer Daniel or Danny?"

Daniel blinked then chuckled lightly. "Oh, uh, they say they have to put our full names on the tags." He tapped at the nametag on his apron. "But I usually just go by Danny."

Dash nodded as he scribbled down a quick note. _Danny, keep drawing. Never give up. Dash Baxter_. "There you go." He grinned as he flipped the sketchbook around for the employee to see.

Danny's eyes widened when he saw it. "Okay. I know I'm being ridiculous about this," he said when he finally managed to stop gawking. "But I just never imagined I would get your autograph. And getting to meet you-" He grinned. "This is the best thing I could have hoped for on Christmas." He looked stricken suddenly, panic flashing through his blue eyes. "Christmas! We were looking for presents. Hold on. I might have another idea for your nephew."

Dash watched as Danny hurried off to one of the aisles of bookcases. Then he took up the pencil again and added something else to his note: his phone number.


	47. Starry Music

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On a cold night, Ember curiously happens upon a young artist.  
> Characters: Danny x Ember

Ember shivered, hugging her coat tighter around her as she thanked whomever was listening that it hadn't begun to snow yet. The weatherman predicted snow late in the evening earlier, but so far it seemed his weather report was a little off. Her teeth chattered noisily as she walked down the street to her bus stop. She almost wished she had accepted her band mate's offer to drive her home, but they lived in the opposite direction. And she would rather not have them anywhere near her house, for a number of reasons.

A rattling noise came from somewhere down the alley she was passing. The bus would be arriving soon, and if she missed it, she would end up having to walk home as it was the last one running for the night. Curiosity, however, got the better of her. She turned down the alley, against her better judgment, and followed the sound until she found a black clad figure crouching next to the wall of one building. Around his feet, various cans of spray paint were scattered. Ember lifted her gaze then gasped when she saw what the person was painting onto the wall. It was a stunning scene of stars so beautifully and realistically done that she almost felt like she was standing in a spaceship staring out into the endless galaxy that wasn't just darkness with tiny sparkling diamonds of stars but bright and colorful and beautiful.

Her gasp must have caught the artist's attention because the person twisted toward her. His face was mostly hidden by the dark bangs hanging down into his blue eyes and the black mask covering his nose and mouth. He glanced past her, perhaps checking the entrance of the alley in case the police appeared. Then he stood slowly as he tugged down the mask.

"I was hoping no one would see it until I was finished," the man admitted, his gaze turning back to his work.

"You-" Ember fumbled for words. "You're really talented. This is amazing."

He blinked then glanced back to her. A light flush of color blossomed upon his cheeks. Or maybe it was just from the chilly night air. "The real thing looks way more amazing." The corners of his mouth stretched into a warm smile. "Always dreamed of getting to see it in person one day."

Ember cocked one eyebrow at him. A street artist who dreamed of traveling the stars? Then she shook her head. It wasn't like she didn't have her own crazy dreams. "I don't think that'll happen if you get arrested for graffiti. As beautiful as it is."

"I was commissioned to do this," he argued. "The owner," he gestured to the building, "wanted something painted here. Sure, it's just an alley wall, but plenty of people cut through here. She wanted them to see something beautiful instead of just another brick wall."

"Well," Ember stepped up beside him and folded her arms, "this will certainly get people to stop and stare for a while." She gazed at the starry image for a moment longer before tearing her gaze away. She stared at the man beside her, taking in the profile of his face. He didn't look like the type of guy she would have thought painted graffiti on walls. He had that clean cut look of someone she would have avoided in high school. They simply wouldn't have run in the same social circles. Still, he was kind of cute. Ember jerked her gaze away before she began to blush.

"Do you play?"

"Huh?" Ember blinked in confusion until the man nodded to what was strapped to her back. She flicked her gaze to her guitar in its case. "Yeah," she shrugged nonchalantly, "I'm in a band."

"Really?" The man smiled, and Ember almost wanted to kick herself for finding him all the more attractive. "That's pretty cool. Maybe I'll check your band out sometime. Uh, well, you know, if you want to tell me where you play."

Ember nodded her head toward the direction from which she came. "There's a club a few blocks from here called Inferno. We usually play on the weekend. Sometimes, you can catch us on a weekday."

"Inferno? Sounds like a toasty place. I'll try to stop by sometime." A beat of silence passed between them. Then the man held out a hand toward her. "I'm Danny, by the way."

"Ember." She shook his hand. It was bigger than hers and strangely warm despite the cold night. He had calluses, and his grip felt strong. Hearing a squeal of wheels from a stopping vehicle, she tore her hand away from his. "Ah, sorry! But I really have to go. That's my bus."

Danny shook his head. "I wouldn't want to make you miss it. See you around, Ember." He walked back over to the building's wall and picked up one of the spray cans.

Ember almost didn't want to leave. Even though she was shivering in the cold, she wanted to watch him paint for a while longer. But if she missed the bus, there would be hell to pay when she finally got home. "See ya," she said before she turned and jogged toward the entrance of the alley. She barely made it in time to get on the bus. The doors were almost closed when she got there, and she had to squeeze through them. She swiped her bus card then wandered toward the back of the bus. For a brief moment, she could see down the alley where Danny continued to work then the bus passed the alley as it headed for the next stop. Ember leaned back in her seat with a sigh, glancing down at her hand, still feeling the warmth of Danny's hand.


	48. Almost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Certain events lead to unusual circumstances for Danny, but he wouldn't dream of changing anything.  
> Characters: Danny, Elle, and Valerie

"Those look pretty," Danny said as he leaned on the kitchen island. He smiled at the young girl when she lifted her head. Her pudgy little cheeks were smeared with icing. A blob of the white stuff clung to the tip of her nose. Danny bit his tongue to avoid laughing at her, though the sight was amusing.

"Do you think Grandpa will like them?" the girl asked, her blue eyes shining with hope.

"Knowing my dad?" Danny chuckled. "He'll love them." He leaned his chin in one hand as he watched the girl decorating the cupcakes they had baked together. She had wanted to do the decorating herself, so the cupcakes kind of looked like the icing and sprinkled had exploded in a colorful, gooey mess. But Danny knew the appearance wouldn't make a bit of difference to his father, who would appreciate the effort regardless.

They weren't technically grandfather and granddaughter, but Danny's father insisted she call him Grandpa. He liked having the little girl come by for visits, and spoiling her rotten. Thankfully, Danny's mother was there to keep the pair of them from misbehaving too badly. Otherwise, his father and the girl would end up eating sweets until their stomachs hurt while watching cartoon after cartoon.

Looking at her, Danny could almost believe she was his daughter. They shared the same dark hair and bright blue eyes. Sometimes, the whole thing felt like a crazy dream. Vlad, during perhaps his craziest period, decided cloning would be a brilliant idea. It wasn't. After being attacked a few times by some botched clones of himself, Danny decided to confront Vlad. He wasn't expecting what he found at the other half ghost's castle. He couldn't remember seeing Vlad so beaten and broken. Vlad was bleeding badly and practically on death's door when Danny arrived. The most surprising part of it all, though, was Vlad protectively wrapped around a baby, keeping her safe from the brutal assault he barely survived.

The details, Vlad had decided, weren't important enough to tell Danny. The only answer he would give was that the clones had turned on him when he decided to terminate them. Danny could sort of understand the clones. He wouldn't very much like to be "terminated" either. Vlad wouldn't give him any details about why he thought of creating clones in the first place. Danny doubted he would ever get the answer, but he wondered about it many times over the years.

Since then, Danny had taken care of the only clone who hadn't turned on its creator. Elle, as she decided she preferred to be called, was different from the other clones. Vlad had tried something new with her, resulting in a baby being created rather than a full grown clone. She grew up like any curious little girl. Sometimes, it was easy to forget she was clone.

His parents were in complete shock when he returned home with Elle. There he was, just a fourteen year old boy with a baby in his arms. It took a lot of explaining, which was a nerve wracking experience for Danny when he came clean about everything. He feared his parents would kick him out, or try to kill him for being half ghost. He even feared his parents hunting down Vlad to kill him after Danny told them about everything that had happened with their old college friend. His parents surprised him by accepting him, though there was an awkward adjustment period. His parents would occasionally look at him with guilt in their eyes, and Danny knew they were remembering all the times they threatened to harm their own son, not knowing at that time that he was also Phantom.

Now, eight years later, things were much better with Danny and his parents. He lived in his own apartment while attending college and working a part time job. It made things a bit difficult with raising Elle. But he had his parents to help out, and most of his classes took place while she was at school too. His parents loved to babysit Elle when Danny couldn't get away to pick her up from school. Elle had pretty much become a granddaughter in his parents' mind.

"I'm back."

Danny turned his head as the door to the apartment closed. "How was work?" He grinned as the woman walked down the hall and into their kitchenette, taking off her coat to throw over the back of the couch.

"Ugh!" she groaned. "You try teaching karate to a bunch of little kids who don't want to listen to you." She walked over to Elle and hugged the girl from behind. "How's my favorite little half ghost?"

"We made cupcakes!" Elle grinned up at the woman.

"You did!" she gasped, her green eyes sparkling. "And they're lovely." Then she lifted her gaze to Danny and gave him a stern glare. "I hope you aren't spoiling her supper."

"No!" Elle answered. "They're for Grandpa!"

"His birthday is tomorrow, so we were going to bring them over then," Danny explained.

"Oh, well, then it's okay." She scooped up some of the leftover icing with a finger.

Danny watched as she licked the icing off her finger and shook his head. He never would have imagined this living arrangement. Valerie was the last person he thought would ever share an apartment with him, especially after she hated Phantom so much. But once she found out the truth and he was able to explain everything, they became good friends, even teaming up to do ghost hunting. Then Valerie learned about Elle, and she wanted to give him a helping hand. She refused to take no for an answer.

Valerie's help was great. Sam and Tucker were there to help out when they were still in high school. But they had gone to college out of town, and Danny was happy for them. He didn't want his own situation to hold them back from achieving their dreams. Valerie, on the other hand, had planned to stay in Amity Park after graduating high school. She wanted to continue with ghost hunting and protecting the town from the evil ghosts. She was also really good with children, and Elle loved doing stuff with her.

As strange as it all seemed, Danny couldn't be happier with how things turned out. With him and Valerie teaming up, fewer ghosts were coming through the portal to stir up trouble. They were both doing well at college and their jobs. Elle had a happy, safe place to grow up like a normal girl despite her abnormal creation. Her ghost powers were starting to develop, but Danny was training her to get them under control. It was almost like they were a happy little family.


	49. Blink of an Eye

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He looked so peaceful when he slept that Vlad didn't wish to wake him yet.  
> Characters: Vlad x Danny
> 
> This is a birthday gift for Ghost Chicky and takes place in her Immortal Husbands AU.

His hair had grown out quite a bit, Vlad noted as he leaned on the back of the couch and stared down at the man sleeping there with a comic book laying open on his chest. Normally, he might comment on how a grown man shouldn't waste time on such silly things, but he decided to keep the opinion to himself. Danny had, after all, worked hard the past couple of years and deserved some time off to goof around as he saw fit.

And when they basically had forever, they could afford to waste some of their time on what Vlad considered childish pursuits. He couldn't deny he had fun during the epic video game battles they occasionally held. He smirked a little when he remembered the first time they played and Danny thought Vlad would be no contest for his young gamer skills. Vlad proved he could be quite the challenger.

Danny twitched in his sleep, and Vlad stood up straighter, his hands still resting on the back of the couch. Then, with a shout of, "Twenty-seven!" Danny jerked upright, his eyes snapping open as the comic book slid off his chest and hit the floor with a thump. Bleary blue eyes glanced around, slowly taking in their surroundings.

"Not even close," Vlad said with an amused quirk of his mouth.

"Huh?" Danny turned toward him, confusion written in the wrinkling of his brow. "Oh, uh." He laughed, raking a hand through his hair, despite it being pulled back into a small ponytail and his bangs held back by clips. "Sorry. I was having a dream about being in math class again, and I was completely blanking on how to solve a problem as simple as two plus two."

"And you came up with twenty-seven?"

A flush of color crept over Danny's cheeks as he turned his head away to hide his embarrassment. "It was a dream. And I got flustered! Everyone was staring at me, practically breathing down my neck waiting for me to write out the answer to the problem on the board."

"Danny," Vlad shook his head, "you graduated with your third degree a month ago. You shouldn't have to worry about such things anymore."

Danny leaned back and tilted his head upward. "Are you trying to tell I'm the only one who gets nightmares about embarrassing situations in school? Because I'm pretty sure that's a common thing for people even after they've graduated." He held up one hand and shook his head. "Though I guess that's not something someone as confident and suave as you would experience."

Vlad frowned, not appreciating the sarcasm oozing from the man's voice. "You know quite well that my college days weren't the best. I had my friends, and we had our inside jokes and teasing names we would call each other. But outside our little circle, I can't say we were all that popular. Your parents and I were considered nerdy science geeks, and our belief in ghosts made us outcasts even among the other science geeks. So, no, I don't look back on all my college days with fond memories."

Danny leaned on the back of the couch as he rubbed his neck. "I guess we make quite the pair, huh? Both bullied in school."

Vlad rested a hand on Danny's head for a moment. Then the corner of his mouth twisted upward, and he gave the younger half ghost's hair a ruffle, mussing up his ponytail even more. "But we had good friends, so it wasn't all bad. Now," he clapped his hands together, "would you like to have your birthday cake?"

"Homemade cake by _the_ Vlad Masters? If I ever say no, assume I've finally gone crazy." Danny grinned as he hopped to his feet, ready to follow Vlad into the kitchen. He caught up to Vlad before they reached the door and looped his arms around the older half ghost's waist, resting his chin on Vlad's shoulder. "Another year gone by, huh? More and more they seem to go by in the blink of an eye."

"At least you'll never have to worry about losing your looks to old age." Vlad led the way toward the table where the small birthday cake sat with a single candle for Danny to blow out. "Happy birthday, Danny." He kissed the other half ghost on his cheek.


	50. Perfectly Imperfect

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vlad strove for perfection but along the way found perfection wasn't what he wanted at all.  
> Characters: Vlad, Danielle, David, Dorian, and Damien  
> Note: Written for Ghost Chicky because her presh clone baby AU idea was too cute to pass up writing something for!

The idea was quite simple in its conception. If Daniel refused to become his son and heir willingly, then Vlad would create his own version. His perfect half ghost son. Acquiring some of Daniel's DNA was an easy task, utilizing young Ms. Valerie Gray as a pawn to get the samples.

In the beginning, creating the perfect son was an obsession for him. His first attempts were too unstable and dissolved even before they gained consciousness. Vlad felt nothing for them. They were empty husks and imperfections. Then he created his first successful clone, the first one to wake to the world. The clone grasped speech and movement quickly and could display a wide range of facial emotions. Happy, sad, angry; it played a game of mirroring whatever expression Vlad made. But within a week, it met with the same fate as its predecessors, melting into a puddle of ectoplasm.

After watching the clone die, its eyes being the last to fade out of existence, the full scope of reality hit him. He wasn't creating empty, mindless shells. The clone could think for itself. It wasn't much different from him except for how it was created. And what did the manner of creation matter in the end? It was still something _alive_.

Half alive, if he wanted to get technical.

Vlad drank himself numb before passing out that night. The next morning was a painful experience with the blinding headache and the sick feeling in his gut. That was a long morning he hoped to never repeat. But once he recovered, he returned to his laboratory to continue his work. It hurt to lose the clone so soon after its creation, but he still wanted a half ghost child of his own. All he had wanted was love and a family. He wouldn't give up on it.

He could only theorize his work for so long before he needed to actually create a new test subject to see if it would work. His next three attempts were more stable than that first successful clone. They were anything but perfect.

The first he named Damien, who was quite large, which reminded Vlad somewhat of Jack back in college. But Vlad worried about Damien suffering the same fate of being feared and hated like Frankenstein's monster. Despite the muscle and fierce anger he could display sometimes, Damien had a soft side, enjoying the presence of birds. Vlad quietly made plans to add an aviary to his property.

The next was David. He lacked a human form, though Vlad was determined to correct that. Vlad wasn't sure what went wrong during his creation, spending a lot of time reviewing the data with a pain in his heart. David never tried to press the matter too much, but on occasion, he would float up to Vlad, his skeletal face oddly expressive and ask in a tentative voice, "Dad... When will I get a human form?" If he could brush that off without a second thought, Vlad knew he would truly be a cold, heartless monster. He would do his utmost to give David that human form he desired.

Dorian liked to stick by David's side. Maybe it was because they both lacked something, unlike Damien who resulted in a fully formed half ghost. Dorian seemed like the perfect clone. In the beginning. Then he started to show signs of dissolving. His hair as a ghost looked like white fire, and one eyeball popped out of its socket before melting into a puddle. Vlad managed to stabilize him before the clone lost anything else. Dorian didn't seem to mind it too much, enjoying the eye patch he got to wear.

They were by far not perfect. They had flaws, and to anyone else, they might even be monsters. His original goal of creating the perfect clone had flown out the window after witnessing that first successful clone dissolve before him. Vlad loved the three of them like they were his real children, because they were.

The last clone he made was quite different from the others. First of all, the clone was female. Second, she was younger. Vlad worried about taking care of a young girl. How was he supposed to handle this? He didn't know what girls needed! But even though she was the most stable of all of them, the other clones easily adopted her into the family. They were like three over protective big brothers for her. Danielle was probably the most mischievous little imp Vlad had ever met. She got into more trouble with her antics than any of the others, though they were easily encouraged by her to join in. Vlad found it difficult to stay angry with her and merely sighed and shook his head when he heard the crash of something that was probably expensive.

When he walked into the kitchen, Vlad frowned at what he found. Danielle floated close to the ceiling with a mound of cookies in her arms while she giggled. Damien, meanwhile, had Dorian and David pinned down, both of them crying uncle to be released. The jar that used to hold the cookies lay shattered on the floor near them.

"What have I told you about using your powers?" Vlad questioned with a disapproving look.

The clones gasped. Danielle dropped back to the floor. Damien hurriedly climbed off the other two and straightened his clothing with a look of shame cast to the floor. Dorian helped David up.

"Not to use our powers until you've managed to find a way to stabilize us," the clones all recited in unison.

"It isn't meant to be a punishment," Vlad assured his children as he plucked four cookies from Danielle's arms. "I just want to keep you safe. Currently, if you overuse your powers, you run the risk of dissolving." He passed a cookie to David, Dorian, and Damien, saving one for himself. "I couldn't bear to lose any of you." He released an "oomph" as the clones pounced on him for a big family hug. A smile graced his face as he hugged them back. They weren't perfect. But what family was?


	51. A Relaxing Trip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny was ready for a horrible trip, but Dash surprised him.  
> Characters: Dash x Danny

Danny hit the bed with a groan, burying his face into the pillow. His everything hurt, and this trip had to be the worst idea anyone had ever thought up. And if the work itself wasn't bad enough, to make everything even worse-

"That's my bed, Fentina," Dash said, giving the other man a hard poke in the back.

Danny frowned as he lifted his head from the pillow. He had the great misfortune of sharing a room with Dash, who seemed to take immense joy in tormenting his work colleague. Of all the people who could have joined him on this business trip, he got stuck with the worst possibility.

"Just," Danny sighed, "give me a minute." He didn't even want to move. Even just thinking about moving made his body ache about fifty times more.

"You can have all the time you want on your own bed."

With a great amount of effort, Danny managed to flip himself over onto his back. "Maybe if I didn't have to do all the heavy lifting, I wouldn't be so exhausted." He glared at the other man, who had far more muscles than Danny did. Anyone who looked at them side by side would have thought Dash would do all the lifting, since he was the stronger of the two. But Dash, being the son of the company president, decided he would simply kick back and order Danny around instead of actually helping.

"Turn back over."

"Uh... What?" Danny blinked at the order and the strict look on Dash's face. What exactly did this grown up bully have in mind? Danny didn't exactly feel like turning his back to the man at the moment.

Dash breathed out noisily through his nose in exasperation. "Flip over." He waved a hand at Danny.

"Not until you tell me what you're going to do." Danny could barely move. If Dash planned on killing him right here right now, Danny wouldn't be able to do much to stop him.

"I could - Do you - Well - I mean-" Dash made a frustrated noise in the back of his throat, looking ready to tear out some his slicked back blond hair. "I could give you a massage?" His brow creased up as he frowned.

They stared at each for what felt like hours, Danny feeling certain he misheard what the other man said. "What?" he finally asked.

Dash's hands flailed about. "You know. Massage! It'll help with the aches in your muscles. My football buddy and I used to give them to each other all time when practice made our muscles sore."

Danny eyed the man uncertainly. Why would Dash even offer anything that might make Danny feel better? It went against everything he knew about the man. But his body was sore everywhere, and the idea of a massage was too tempting. With a sigh, and maybe a grunt, he rolled over again. "Fine," he muttered into the pillow. When the bed shifted then he felt the man settling on top of him, he thought maybe this was a bad decision. His body stiffened when Dash placed his hands on his back.

"This isn't going to work if you don't relax."

"S-Sorry." Danny felt a small flush of embarrassment. How else was he supposed to feel with the other man on top of him? He took a deep breath then released it slowly, letting his body relax, as best as he could.

After a moment, Dash's hands moved, working up from the small of Danny's back. His shirt shifted with Dash's movements, running his hands along Danny's spine and working the muscles along the sides of it. Danny sighed out as his body relaxed even more, happy to have some of the soreness leaving him. Dash reached his shoulders and kneaded the muscles there, relieving some of the tension that had built up from the long day. Danny's breath hitched when Dash's hands ghosted over his neck, light feathery touches dancing down it before they disappeared lower to continue the massage. Had he imagined that moment? Danny wasn't sure, but the question shuffled to the back of his mind as his eyes fluttered shut. He was beginning to feel normal again with all the soreness melting away.

"Nn, Dash," Danny groaned when the man worked out a particularly difficult knot.

Dash stopped, though his hands remained on Danny's body. Flesh to flesh, Danny realized, snapping open his eyes. His shirt had ridden up so most of his lower back was left unclothed.

"Could, uh," Dash swallowed thickly, "you not do that again?"

Biting his tongue because he didn't trust his voice, Danny nodded, glad he faced away from Dash because his cheeks were burning with a bright red blush. He wanted to die from embarrassment!


	52. First Step

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny never dreamed he would find himself in this situation with Dash of all people.  
> Characters: Dash x Danny  
> Warning for abuse.

The fist slammed into the wall, too close to his head for his liking. Danny cracked open an eye then looked up to the man looming over him. He gulped, not relaxing from his tense, hunched shoulders posture against the wall. Why he was called out here to meet with the jock, Danny still didn't know. But the intensity in his dark blue eyes was making Danny squirm uncomfortably.

"I think I'm in love with you, and I'm terrified." Despite the scary expression on his face, Dash's voice was surprisingly gentle.

"No offense," Danny held up his hands, hoping to keep the jock calm, "but I'm a little terrified myself right now." He licked his lips, and only a small piece of him relaxed when Dash didn't immediately hit him. "And, um, this is all coming out of left field. I mean, what do you even really know about me? And you haven't exactly given me many reasons to like you."

All of this was a little too overwhelming for him. It was taking all he had to remain calm, but the panic was still creeping into him. Dash _liked_ him? No, not just liked. He _loved_ him! Danny couldn't believe it. He was waiting for Dash to tell him it was a joke and punch him in the gut. Or maybe he was waiting for Danny to make a complete fool of himself for the rest of the school to see so Danny could never come to school again without being utterly humiliated every second of the day.

Oh no. He couldn't breathe. He was gasping for air, but he couldn't seem to bring enough into his lungs. His panic was steadily growing because he couldn't believe Dash would ever, in any reality, love him. This Dash in front of him had to be a - A pod person! Or maybe some ghost was playing a prank on him. Yeah, that was it. Wasn't there a ghost that could change its appearance at will? What was its name? Crap! He couldn't even think straight!

"Hey!"

The shout was loud and right next to his ear. Hands gripped his upper arms and gave him a quick shake, not violent or hard but just enough to jolt him from his thoughts. Danny's eyes refocused on the man in front of him. The concern in his eyes only made Danny believe even more that this couldn't be the real Dash.

"Is this a joke?" Danny snapped, pulling out of Dash's hold. "Are you messing with me? Because it's not funny to tell someone something like that for some cruel prank."

Dash flinched back, hurt passing through his eyes. "No, that's not-" He growled in frustration, smacking his forehead then running his hand down his face. "I swear I'm not messing with you." He stepped up closer, reaching out his hands. One part of Danny's mind told him to get away from the jock, but he stood still, allowing Dash to gingerly, gently cup his face. "What I said was real. And I know how crazy it sounds because it terrifies me. A lot. I watch romance dramas, but I don't know the first thing about it in real life. Most nights, my dad beats me senseless while he drinks away his pay check. So the idea of loving someone and turning into my dad who seems to equate love with violence keeps me awake at night. And I've been trying to pretend like I don't have feelings for you because I keep being afraid that admitting it is the first step toward being my dad. And I know I've been a jerk. And I know I've beaten you up. But violence is the only way I've ever known how to deal with things."

Danny frowned as he listened to Dash, his heart sinking lower and lower while horrible images of what the jock must have gone through at the hands of his father danced in his mind. He never stopped to think about there being a reason behind Dash harassing people. It didn't excuse his actions or make them in any way okay, but Danny found he could understand and sympathize with the jock. He took a breath and placed his hands over Dash's wrists as he stared up into the conflicted dark blue eyes.

"Congratulations," Danny said with a small, tentative smile while Dash's brow knitted with his confusion. "You've just taken the first step to _not_ becoming your dad. It'll take some work, and it won't be easy, but I think you can make it. Now that you've identified the problem, you can work on learning how to better handle your emotions by not responding with violence. I think Lancer could help. He'd love to help! He always wants to help out students. I know you can be better than your father. So you don't have to be afraid to love."

Something lifted in Dash's expression. Maybe he just needed to hear someone believe he could grow up to be someone other than father. He pulled his hands away, reaching one back to rub at his neck with his gaze averted. "Um, so you don't return my feelings?"

"I think dating should come before we start telling each other we love each other. So how about we start with a dinner?"

Dash looked at him, almost surprised by the answer. Then he relaxed, a smile managing to stretch onto his face. "Yeah, a dinner sounds good."


	53. Nature Walk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny can't deal with Vlad's grumpiness anymore.  
> Characters: Vlad and Danny

"It hasn't been so bad," Danny said with a weak smile. It quickly melted off his face when the older half ghost turned a withering glare onto him. He swallowed, half wanting to shrinking away from Vlad and half wanting to laugh at the messy silver hair with flyaway strands and locks loose from his usual ponytail. Needless to say, Vlad wasn't having the best time.

Vlad wasn't happy from the beginning when his parents announced this whole bonding trip into the woods. His sister lucked out of not having to come because she had already made plans with her friends for the weekend. The moment they arrived at the campsite, his parents announced there would be no ghost powers allowed during the trip. Before they could even protest, his parents slapped ecto energy cancellers onto each of their wrists, effectively making it impossible for them to use any powers. His mother kept charge of the keys and wouldn't unlock the cancellers until they returned home. For twenty plus years, Vlad relied on his ghost powers. Not being able to access them seemed to make him grumpier than ever.

"We leave in the morning," Danny reminded, trying to keep a positive, upbeat tone. "You can make it until then."

"You'll have to forgive me if I can't be as positive about this as you," Vlad spat. "But sleeping on the hard ground hasn't exactly been my idea of a good time."

With a sigh, Danny stood. Then he walked over to where Vlad sat and hooked his hands under the other half ghost's arms and hoisted him to his feet.

"Unhand me!" Vlad complained, swatting at him. "What do you think you're doing?"

"So, I found this waterfall earlier," Danny said with a step back as he folded his arms. "Sitting around here doesn't seem to be improving your sour mood. I thought maybe seeing some of the wonders of nature might actually improve your mood." He snorted to himself, wondering if it was even possible for Vlad to be anything but crossed at the world. "Follow if you want. Or don't. I don't care." He threw up his arms then turned and headed into the woods, walking toward where he remembered spotting the waterfall.

As he walked, Danny thought Vlad would simply go back to sitting at the campsite, grumbling about everything. But a few seconds later, he heard the crunch of leaves and snap of fallen twigs under the footsteps following him. A smile sneaked onto his face.

After several minutes, and a lot of pastry curses under Vlad's breath when his clothes snagged on branches or he nearly tripped after stubbing his toe on roots, they could hear the crash of water cascading down from the tall cliff. Then they broke through the tree line and arrived at the bank of a river flowing away from the waterfall. When he heard the gasp, Danny turned to see Vlad standing beside him with his mouth hanging open as he gawked at the waterfall with a double rainbow formed from its spray.

"A beautiful sight, isn't it?" Danny grinned. If this couldn't snap Vlad from his grumpiness, Danny wasn't sure anything could.

Vlad's mouth snapped shut, apparently realizing he was gaping like a fool. He smoothed out his shirt with a sharp nod. "Yes, quite lovely." Silence passed between them with only the sounds of the waterfall and the tweets of birds in the trees to fill it. "Thank you, Daniel." His voice was so quiet Danny nearly missed it.

Bright blue eyes widened. Danny almost couldn't believe what he heard. But the subtle smile on Vlad's face was even more unbelievable. With a smirk, he stepped closer and nudged the man in the ribs with his elbows. "Oh, oh! What's this? Mr. Grumps can _smile_?"

Vlad turned toward him, and Danny nearly flinched back, afraid the man would be angry and punch him for the teasing. To the young half ghost's surprise, Vlad wrapped his arms around Danny and pulled him closer for a hug. Danny stood awkwardly, uncertain of what to do or what Vlad might be planning.

"This is nice," Vlad mumbled. "When it's not immediately followed by excruciating shocks."

Danny released half a laugh as he returned the hug. "Yeah, sorry about that. Though at the time, you totally deserved it."

Vlad snorted out a laugh. "Okay. Maybe I did."


	54. Secret Surprises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When he heard the announcement, panic filled him.  
> Characters: Vlad x Danny

"I'm pregnant."

Vlad froze, his hands still holding onto Danny's foot as he was in the middle of giving the young man a foot massage while they lounged on the couch. Clearly, he had heard that statement incorrectly, but he could see the worry clouding the bright blue eyes, which made him worry he had heard right.

"You're-"

The nod set him back a moment. Vlad scrambled for how to react in this situation for which he was completely unprepared.

"Oh, come on, Vlad!" Danny wiggled his foot. "This should be a happy occasion."

Vlad shot a dark look at the young man to silence him, but Danny merely smiled like a little devil. "I'm just having a little difficulty with how this happened. I mean, you-"

"Val and I decided we wanted a child," Elle stated simply, frowning in obvious disappointment of his response. "We want a family together. So we decided to look into a donor."

"But surely it would be better-"

"Val's job needs her to stay in top shape," Elle cut him off. "She loves her job, and I wouldn't ask her to sacrifice it to have a child when I'm perfectly capable of carrying it myself." She folded her arms, her mouth pursing in unhappiness.

"Seriously, Vlad, why are you getting so uppity about this?" Danny frowned too, now nudging at the older man's chest with his foot. "She's not a little kid anymore. She's perfectly capable of deciding whether she wants a child or not. She and Val will make great mothers, and you can't say you don't believe that too."

"That's not the problem." Vlad huffed, not liking the two of them ganging on him. "In case you forgot, none of us here are exactly human. There could be complications with the pregnancy that we can't even foresee. And I don't wish to draw any attention to ourselves if something... _unusual_ were to happen while she was carrying a child."

With a groaning sigh, Elle walked over and dropped onto the couch, plumping herself down on Vlad's other side. "Would it help you relax if I pointed out that I'm basically the surrogate? We used Val's eggs and put them in me then the whole spermy deal." She gestured with her hands, and Vlad was glad not to hear the full details of the procedure. "So I'm just the oven cooking Val's bun."

"It's really the best plan," Danny said as he removed his feet from Vlad's lap then shifted so he was leaning against the man. "Since we knew there might be issues with Elle herself having a child. But this way, it's Val's biological child and Elle's the birth mother."

Elle grinned. "In that way, it's like it's my and Val's child, even if it's not related to me by blood."

Vlad resisted the urge to run his hands over his face and sigh. Instead, he turned his gaze onto Danny. "You knew all about this."

Danny laughed weakly, shrinking away. "Yeah, well, you know," he stumbled over his words, shoulders hunching up. "They needed some advice, and they weren't sure how you might react. It was sort of a group effort coming up with this idea. You can't really be mad," he winced, "right?"

Vlad sighed. "Not mad. Just concerned." He smiled to Elle. "I'm very happy for you and Val. You should bring her over one night, and we can have a big dinner to celebrate. And you!" Vlad twisted to the other side and caught Danny's nose between his fingers before the man could react. "You should know not to keep such secrets from me."

"It was Elle's secret!" Danny argued, swatting at the hand. "I didn't want to ruin her surprise."

Vlad released his nose, and Danny pouted as he rubbed at it. His fingers threaded through the raven locks then he tugged Danny's head closer and laid a kiss on the man's temple. "And I do appreciate the surprise." He smiled at the heated blush on Danny's cheeks.


	55. Never Forever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny couldn't remember waking up with his head splitting this badly after a fight.  
> Characters: Danny x Valerie

"What happened?" Danny winced, brow knitting as he reached up to rub at his aching, throbbing head.

"You fainted... Straight into my arms."

Danny cracked open his eyes, the light though dim feeling a bit blinding to him. Sitting in the chair beside the bed was Valerie with a book in her lap. She closed it and set it aside with a serious expression on her face.

"You know, if you wanted my attention, you didn't have to go to such extremes."

Panic surged through him. Danny shot up in the bed, regretting the action immediately as his brain stabbed in agony. He bent forward with his head in his hands. "Ow, ow, ow!" When the pain had lessened a little, he sat up again, slower, and stared at Valerie. "You're going to have to fill me in on some details. Because I - Where am I?" He glanced around the unfamiliar room. "What exactly happened last night?" He tried to remember the events of last night, but everything was just a blur. He couldn't even catch hold of fragments of memories.

Valerie frowned, and concern actually entered her green eyes. "You... really don't remember?"

Danny averted his gaze. "Look. I know things were bad between us after our breakup."

"It's not like I hated you, Danny." Valerie got up and walked over to sit on the bed with him. After a moment of hesitation, she took his hand, lacing their fingers together. "Things just... They didn't work out back then."

Danny sighed. He remembered all too well the heartbreak that followed Valerie dumping him. They were only fourteen back then, and too many things got in the way. Valerie had her ghost hunting. Danny had being Phantom. Their social statuses at school differed. But now they were older. When he found out they were living close to each other, Danny had almost let himself hope they could try again.

"Yeah, I know," he mumbled in defeat. "But this isn't about that. I seriously don't remember last night. Or, uh, fainting in your arms."

Valerie eyed him critically. "That would definitely explain why you were acting so weird when you came up to me in the bar." She squeezed his hand. "I saw you talking with some guys. Well, fighting might be a better word. You didn't look very happy to see them. Then after they left, you hit on a few girls. Very poorly, I might add."

Danny flushed in embarrassment, but he still didn't remember any of what Valerie was saying.

"Then you spotted me and came over to talk." Valerie's mouth pursed slightly, and worry settled over Danny. What did he say to her to make her give him that kind of expression? "Other than the really _awful_ pickup lines, you kept trying to tell me something. You said it was really important, and you knew it would probably mean we could never ever hope to have a relationship again but you still had to tell me. Before you could, though, you just collapsed into my arms."

His stomach practically dropped right out of his body. Danny could think of only one thing he would could tell her that was of extreme importance. From the expression on her face, it seemed Valerie was now waiting for him to finish what he was going to say last night.

"I didn't even have that much to drink," Danny muttered, rubbing at his head with his free hand. He only had maybe half a beer, and he had never had a reaction like that to alcohol. But he could worry about that later. Right now, he needed to figure out what to say to Valerie. He couldn't think of anything other than the truth, because nothing else would be believable. Valerie wouldn't let it drop either. She could be a very stubborn woman. Danny had always liked how strong willed she was. After taking a deep breath, he lifted his gaze back to her. "Valerie, I am Phantom."

After a beat of silence, Valerie laughed, and Danny worried she didn't believe him. "Danny," she said after getting control of her laughter, "I've known that for years!"

"What?" Danny's eyes widened in shock, and he must have looked ridiculous because Valerie laughed again.

"I put it all together our senior year," Valerie explained with a smile. "I never said anything because, well, by that point we had buried the hatchet and started working together."

Danny laughed, shaking his head. "Do you know how many times I thought about telling you?" He stared at Valerie with a soft, sad smile. "I always thought you would hate me forever if I told you."

Valerie squeezed his hand again. "I could never hate you forever, Danny." She smiled then a devious smirk curled upon her face. "Now how about we go scare up some answers about what happened to you from those guys?"


	56. Lazy Sundays

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes, life doesn't go exactly as planned, but sometimes, that's all right.  
> Dash x Danny x Kwan

It came as no surprise to him when he woke up in a tangle of limbs. Danny always seemed to end up the middle, squeezed between the two jocks. Kwan was sprawled on his side of the bed with his arm under Danny's body, curling around the smaller man's waist. Dash snorted to himself as a fond smile spread over his sleepy face.

This wasn't the life he had always envisioned for himself. Dash thought he would graduate college, find a great job that paid well, marry some pretty woman, start a family, and have a happily ever after. It was the life his father had always pushed him toward, when he wasn't yelling at him to do better in football. Up until two years ago, it was the life he was still seeking to achieve.

Sometimes, he couldn't even remember the events leading up to what he had now, but he was more than satisfied with how things turned out. He had two people in his life that loved him madly, and he loved both of them in return. At first, he honestly didn't see how this could work. He expected jealousy to tear the whole thing apart within a week, but he was happily surprised to find the relationship could work. It wasn't rainbows and sunshine all the time. They still had their fights, sometimes over silly little things and other times big things. They managed to work through those obstacles though and often settled into a happy rhythm of living together.

Dash gave Danny's knee a squeeze. The man's brow wrinkled, and he curled up to look even smaller. Dash rolled his eyes. "Come on." He gave the knee a shake. "We already missed breakfast."

Danny mumbled. "A few more minutes."

"It's almost lunch time. How can the two of you keep pretending to be asleep?" Dash poked at Danny's knee.

"It's Sunday," Kwan murmured. After a moment, he rolled over, wrapping his other arm around Danny's waist. He frowned over Danny's head at Dash. "First Sunday we've all had off in a couple of weeks now."

"Ye-" Danny yawned widely, "-ah." He blinked open sleepy eyes. "I just wanna spend the whole day in bed with my two favorite guys." He lazily dropped a hand on Dash's waist and tugged at his shirt to pull him closer.

Dash sighed like it was a great inconvenience to him as he rolled onto his side and draped his arm over Danny and Kwan. "I suppose we could stay in bed a little while longer. But we should get up to eat something at some point."

Danny smiled, nuzzling his face into Dash's chest. "Just a few more minutes."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this to accompany the amazing art Ghost Chicky drew: http://ghost-chicky.tumblr.com/post/122855987127/my-half-of-an-art-trade-with-deadfield-i-hope-you


	57. Baring the Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The summer is almost over. And what better way to spend the last week than hanging out with friends at a cabin by the lake?  
> Characters: Kwan x Danny
> 
> Prompt suggested by will-zeke-thomson on tumblr.

"We're going to start barbecuing soon," Dash called when he noticed Kwan stepping out the front door of the cabin.

"I won't be long," Kwan said, rolling his eyes at his friend. "I just want to take a look around before it gets too dark." His aunt had loaned him her cabin out by the lake so he and his friends could spend the last week of summer there. She grumbled something about teenagers and just wanting an excuse to party all day without responsibility when she handed him the key. After working all summer, being yelled at by customers, Kwan thought he deserved a little fun with his friends.

He walked off the path from the road to the cabin and weaved through the trees of forest, taking in the beauty of the nature surrounding him. The sounds from the cabin faded away the farther he walked. The birds chirped. Twigs snapped under his feet. The leaves in the trees rustled in the light breeze. He could just see the lake through the trees until he turned, walking away from the lake. After Dash suggested the idea two weeks ago, Kwan couldn't stop thinking about the trip to the cabin. He even had his camera with him in case he spotted a deer or something while he walked.

When he heard something snap somewhere ahead of him, Kwan stilled, listening carefully. Then he heard some rustling. He reached into his bag, bringing out his camera. Even though he thought about being able to snap some pictures of wildlife during their stay at the cabin, he didn't actually expect to happen upon anything this soon after arriving. He crept forward, trying to move as quietly as possible to avoid spooking whatever animal had made the noise. He raised his camera, ready to take pictures, when he got closer to the source of the noise.

He hit the button to take the picture before he even registered what exactly he was seeing in front of him. Slowly, the camera lowered, along with Kwan's jaw. He could not have actually seen what he thought he just saw. The man in front of him tugged on the pair of jeans he grabbed from a pile next to him. A naked man in the middle of the forest was odd, sure, but that wasn't what had Kwan's eyes nearly bugging out of their sockets.

The man bent down to grab the shirt folded up on the ground. When he did, he half turned to Kwan, who dropped his camera. It clunked as it hit the ground, and Kwan would have cursed at breaking it if his attention wasn't so focused on the other man. The sound, though, alerted the man to the fact that he was no longer alone in the woods. He jerked upright and twisted to stare at Kwan as his blue eyes grew wide with shock, and maybe a little fear.

"Danny!" Kwan gasped, hardly believing what he was seeing.

"Uh, Kwan." Danny's eyes darted around the woods like a spooked animal searching for the best escape route. "W-What are you doing here?"

"My aunt has a cabin around here," Kwan answered without thinking. "Were you," his brow creased as he pointed at the other man, "just a wolf?"

"No!" Danny snorted, laughing awkwardly but couldn't look Kwan in the face.

"Really?" Kwan stared flatly, not buying the total lie. "Because I'm pretty sure I just watched you change from being a wolf."

"Pfft! Are you sure you're not thinking about a movie you watched recently?" Danny quickly pulled on his shirt instead of continuing to stand around shirtless. "I mean, there are some pretty awesome movies with werewolves in them. But that's not a real thing."

"Danny, I know what I saw." Frowning, Kwan folded his arms. "You were a wolf then you changed back into you. I was standing right here when it happened. Plus you still," he reached up his hands and held them to the side of his head, flapping his fingers, "have your ears showing. And I can see fangs when you talk."

Danny spun away from him, reaching up to feel the top of his head to find that, yes, he did have furry ears sticking up from his hair. After a moment, the ears vanished right before Kwan's eyes. When he faced the jock again, Danny grinned, showing off normal human teeth. "I don't know what you mean. No ears or fangs here."

"Danny, just tell me what's going on." Kwan bent over and picked up his broken camera. Then he stepped closer to Danny. He was a bit wary after seeing the whole wolf to person changing thing he did, but he had known Danny since they were six. Maybe they weren't friends, but he always knew Danny as a nice guy. "I'll admit I'm trying not to completely freak out about this. But I'm not going to go running off screaming, 'Danny's a werewolf!' to everyone I see."

Danny rubbed awkwardly at his arm with his gaze lowered to the forest floor. Uncertainty practically radiated from him, and Kwan could understand why the man was hesitant to talk to him about what happened. Kwan's best friend hadn't treated Danny all that great since their freshman year. Trusting a jock probably went against his first instincts.

"I came up here to camp," Danny said, reaching up to tug on his ear as he frowned. "The stars are a lot clearer up here, so I wanted to be able to observe them. Tucker and Sam came with me, but they had to head back early. It was late at night, and I was busy looking through my telescope. I heard some noise in the woods, but I figured it was just a rabbit or a deer or something. I hadn't really seen anything dangerous. Turns out it was a wolf." He laughed but there was no humor in it. "Who would have thought, right? It bit me right here." He circled a spot on his left thigh. "I really thought it was going to kill me. It dragged me into the forest. I kept trying to grab onto something to stop it, but it all just kept slipping through my fingers. I think I eventually passed out from the pain. Or maybe the blood loss." Danny shrugged like it didn't matter which one it was. "When I woke, it was morning, and I was somewhere in the middle of the forest. My clothes were basically shredded. I didn't have any scarring though. I thought my leg was going to be this horrible bloody mess, maybe even have some chunks ripped out. But there was nothing. I almost thought I dreamed the whole thing. How could that have happened and I didn't have a scar on my body?"

"When did you realize the wolf wasn't just a wolf?" Kwan could only imagine how the experience terrified the other man. He swallowed thickly, not wanting to ever go through what Danny had.

"Well, it kind of seemed obvious when night came, and I," Danny looked away, crossing his arms like it would somehow protect him, "changed. It freaked me out pretty bad. I didn't know what was happening. Just all of a sudden I was in pain and collapsed to the ground. I could pretty much feel everything as bone and muscle shifted and stuff. And then I was a wolf. And," he lowered his gaze in embarrassment, "I may have eaten a rabbit. I don't know. It was all really fuzzy that first time, and I woke up with a rabbit carcass next to me."

"That would be pretty freaky."

"Yeah. I've been getting better though!" Danny's brow furrowed. "I think. I've been trying to control it, and I think it's working. But I keep thinking: What if I can't control it before school starts? What if it's the middle of class and I all of a sudden lose control and change? I doubt people are just going to be okay seeing me change into a wolf."

"Yeah," Kwan frowned, "I don't see people reacting well to that." He looked at Danny, and he could tell how panicked the other man was. This kind of thing wasn't something a person adjusted to right away. Danny was trying hard to gain control for his protection as much as for the protection of everyone around him. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"What exactly could you do?"

Kwan winced. "Probably nothing," he admitted with a defeated feeling. "I just - I want to help. If I can. You don't have to go through this alone."

Danny actually seemed surprised by Kwan's answer. He probably never thought a jock would offer help, especially willingly. "Oh, um, thanks." He shifted his weight, seeming uncertain of what to say or do next.

Kwan glanced around, trying to think of how to fill the sudden awkward silence. "It's getting late," he noted, looking up to see the sky darkening. "I'm supposed to get back. We're going to barbecue. Um, I'd invite you-"

Danny raised a hand to stop Kwan with a shake of his head. "Don't worry about it. If I showed up, there would be too many questions. Plus I'm sure Dash wouldn't want me there."

"Sorry." Kwan frowned sadly. He hated to leave Danny to deal with his situation alone, but he couldn't think of a way he could help. His presence may not be helpful if Danny lost control and ended up attacking him.

"You don't have to apologize." Danny shrugged, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "Um, I'm camped just over there." He nodded his head backward and to the left to indicate the general location of his camp. "If you want to talk again or something."

"Sure." Kwan grinned. "Maybe I can slip out sometime tomorrow."

Danny nodded. "I'll see you around then." He turned to walk back to his camp but paused. "Um, so I've shredded up a lot of my clothes with accidental transformations." His cheeks darkened. "This is basically the last of my clothes that aren't completely ruined."

Kwan almost laughed. "I can bring a change of clothes from my stuff, though they might be a bit big."

"That's fine." Danny smiled. "Thanks, Kwan. Um, I'll figure out a way to pay you back. For the camera."

Kwan shook his head. "You don't really have to. It's was my fault for dropping it in the first place."

"Yeah, but you wouldn't have dropped it if you hadn't seen me."

"It's really fine." Kwan sighed in defeat when he saw the determination on Danny's face. "But if you feel you must."

"I must." Danny bobbed his head. "And I should stop holding you up from getting back to your friends. So I'm just going to go now." He pointed to his camp as he backed up a step. "See you later."

"Bye," Kwan said as he raised a hand and waved before Danny turned around and kept walking. Kwan stayed where he stood for a few minutes, trying to absorb everything that had happened. Danny was a werewolf, and as far as he knew, Kwan was the only other person who knew Danny's secret. Turning in the opposite direction of where Danny went, Kwan headed back to his aunt's cabin. "A real werewolf, huh?" he mumbled to himself with a small smile. It sounded like something out of a movie, but he had to admit he was looking forward to spending some more time with Danny.


	58. While Everyone Slept

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vlad has a plan but doesn't plan for everything.  
> Characters: Jack x Vlad
> 
> Christmas gift for ghost-chicky on tumblr!

Vlad huffed to himself in the quiet, dark laboratory with only a small work lamp providing light as he tinkered with another piece of their project. The thing as a whole was giving them problems, but he was certain he could figure out a way to make it work. At least, for a little while until he was able to steal it away for his own purposes.

Why work so hard and late into the night if he was simply going to steal it later? The answer was quite simple: to impress Maddie. If he could at least get this thing semi-working, perhaps she would finally see that he was far superior to Jack. His prior attempts had failed spectacularly, but this would work. This was the first step in succeeding. He could feel it. If he could just get this hot fudge sundae contraption to work!

"So this is where you disappeared to?"

Vlad cursed under his breath when his finger was pinched between two metal pieces. Sucking on his index finger where it was pinched, he twisted around on his seat and glowered at the larger man who lumbered into the laboratory like some happy golden retriever seeking attention. "Weren't you sleeping?" He was certain everyone in the house had gone to bed already, even Daniel who had paced around anxiously for what seemed like hours.

"I couldn't sleep." Jack wandered over to Vlad's work station, his dark blue eyes scanning curiously over the other man's work. "I should have known you'd be up working on this." He laid a hand on Vlad's shoulder. "You were always like this in college. That brilliant brain of yours never could shut off until you were satisfied. Remember?" He grinned at the other man, his old roommate. "I used to have to haul you out over my shoulder and back to our room just so you would get some rest."

Vlad frowned, not liking when Jack got to reminiscing about their old college days. He always tried to put thoughts of those days out of his mind. Maybe on some level he feared if he thought about it, he would realize Jack was almost exactly the same as back then and it would be easy to simply fall back into their old friendship. He couldn't let allow that. Not after everything that happened.

"Yes," Vlad said, a touch of his seething bitterness seeping into his voice, "I recall those instances quite clearly."

Jack's jolly demeanor fell slightly, which seemed unusual as the man normally didn't pick up on any subtle cue that not everyone agreed with his recollection of past events. Harriet Chin certainly had never liked when Jack shortened her name to Harry Chin, not that Jack ever noticed.

"You know," Jack's gaze lowered, and Vlad shifted uncomfortably in his seat, but then Jack turned his eyes away, "if you change this part right here," he pointed out the spot he meant, leaning over Vlad to do so, "you'll have a much better output. It might be enough to slow down the amount of energy it takes to power it."

Too close! The warning bells screamed in Vlad's head. Jack was far too close. Vlad could feel the other man's breath tickling his ear as he spoke. His cheeks warmed, and he cursed inwardly. Why was his body reacting just because Jack was standing so close to him? It wasn't like Jack hadn't crushed him in a hug when he arrived. So why was this different? Because they were alone? Because there was only dim lighting? Or maybe because Jack seemed to be acting with some restraint? Despite how close he was, Jack still kept a thin amount of distance between them. Whatever the reason, Vlad wasn't oblivious to the sudden hiccup in his heartbeat.

"I'm quite-" Vlad caught himself before yelling and cleared his throat. "I was getting to that."

Jack smiled. It wasn't his usual stupid goofy smile that left Vlad gritting his teeth in frustration. There was something else to his smile, something Vlad couldn't quite put his finger on but left his heart feeling like it was trying to beat out of his chest. And it might have if it could figure out how to turn intangible all on its own. Vlad swallowed, and it was like molasses sticking to and clogging his throat.

"Of course," Jack agreed. "You always notice things like that." His smile faltered. "I've really missed you." His head jerked back, only a touch, like he suddenly realized the implications of his comment. His cheeks turned pink, which only made Vlad shift under him. "Working together on projects," Jack added. "Though being roommates was pretty great too." The corner of his mouth curled. "Plenty of good times just the two of us, right?"

Vlad shot up from his chair and jabbed a finger into Jack's broad chest. "No!" he said firmly. "You are not doing this again. I'm not getting sucked into this."

"What?" Jack's brow furrowed in a look of possibly genuine bafflement.

"You did this in college too," Vlad continued, just barely keeping from rising. "You'd do stuff and say stuff. You'd do that thing where you'd take off your shirt right in front of me, showing off your stupid gorgeous body. You were seducing me on purpose. And now you're trying to do it again!"

"You," Jack's eyebrows rose up, "think I'm trying to seduce you?"

Vlad narrowed his eyes. "Don't play dumb. You know exactly what you're doing. Leaning in all close. Talking into my ear. You're trying to get a reaction out of me just like in college!"

Jack leaned in so their faces were at eye level with each other. His mouth did that little smirking curl Vlad remembered from college, which drove him mad at times. "Oh, am I?"

"Yes!" Vlad snapped in exasperation. "And what's more-"

His eyes widened when Jack suddenly cut him off, their lips pressing together in perhaps not the smoothest of kisses. It probably would have gone better if Jack hadn't attempted the kiss right in the middle of Vlad speaking, but the clumsiness was exactly what Vlad expected. He thought he had these feelings buried away where he could never find them again, buried long before the whole accident with the proto-portal. He had shoved away any feelings for Jack other than friendship because he had always believed there was never any chance there. Even though he had suspected Jack was attempting to seduce him with his antics during their college days, Vlad always assumed it was some kind of joke with the other man. There was simply no way Jack could ever like him as anything more than a friend.

Yet they stood there in the dimly lit laboratory in the late night with their lips locked.

_Oh buttered biscuits!_ Vlad thought as his body relaxed and he leaned into the kiss.


	59. Ice Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny isn't all that impressed when a guest shows up.  
> Characters: Phantom x Fenton
> 
> Christmas gift for fastpacedfreefall on tumblr!

Danny lifted his head when a hand smacked him on the shoulder. He turned a curious look to his friend, sitting beside him on the bench.

"Look who decided to pay us a visit." Tucker nodded his head toward the open doorway.

Just within their vision through the doorway, Danny caught sight of familiar white hair as the other man talked to some reporters. He rolled his eyes. "Whatever. He's just looking for attention."

Tucker frowned. "He just has that way of making a guy feel completely invisible."

"Aw," Danny grinned as he nudged his friend with an elbow, "you know you're beautiful to me."

Tucker shoved him, and Danny couldn't help chuckling. "Are you heading out now?" He stood, throwing his bag over his shoulder.

"I thought I'd get in a little more practice." Danny bent over again, tightening his laces.

"You work too hard sometimes, man."

"Don't let Sam catch you saying that. She'll threaten you with more hours of practicing."

Tucker winced. "Whatever you do, _don't_ agree to skate with a partner. It is so not worth it."

"You're the one that thought skating with a girl was a good idea." Danny stood then patted his friend on the shoulder. "And Sam wouldn't give you such a hard time if you were more dedicated to practicing your routines. I'll catch you later."

Tucker made a face. "See ya." They bumped fists, and Tucker headed out of the locker room.

Danny went the other way, heading back out to the rink to get a bit more practice in before he decided to head home for the night. He stepped out onto the ice and glided toward the center of the rink. He always loved skating. His sister taught him when they were little, holding his hands while she skated backwards until he was steady enough to try it on his own. When he took up classes at the local rink, he met his best friends Tucker and Sam. They supported each other as they all skated in competitions. But what he loved about skating was how it felt gliding over the ice, and when it was dark and the crowd snapped photos, he could imagine he was skating through space with a thousand twinkling stars all around him.

Danny went into a jump, but he could feel it was off before he even left the ice. His foot hit the ice, and he grunted, grimacing as he wobbled but somehow managed to stay upright instead of falling on his butt. Turning to continue with his routine, the sound of clapping caught him off guard. He stumbled and pitched forward, slamming into the ice. As he pushed himself up, he winced at the throbbing in his right wrist.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you."

Danny scowled as he got back to his feet, shaking out his sore wrist. "What are you doing here?" He glanced around then turned back to the white haired man as he lifted an eyebrow. "And where's your entourage of reporters?"

The other skater frowned. "I sent them away. Told them I needed to practice without distractions."

"Then why come here?" Danny skated away and almost groaned when he realized the other man was following him. "You have your own rink, don't you? Are you just here for the attention?"

The man skated out before Danny and came to a halt, forcing Danny to stop too before they could run into each other. "First off," he lifted a finger, "it's not my rink. It belongs to my coach."

Danny folded his arms. "And the big difference is what, Phantom? You're basically the only one who uses the rink since you're the _only_ skater he's training."

"I'm sorry." Phantom scratched at the side of his head. "Have I done something to offend you? This is the first time we're really speaking to one another."

"I'm just wondering," Danny glanced the other skater over, "why the number one men's figure skater is bothering to show up here, at a relatively small rink, to 'practice' as you put it."

"Okay." Phantom glided a few inches forward with his head bowed, almost seeming shy. "Maybe I didn't come here for the reason I told those reporters."

Danny lifted his chin a little and stared down his nose at the skater. "Oh really?" he asked sarcastically. "Then do tell. _Why_ are you here? Did you want to size up the competition? Because I'm pretty sure I'm not even in the top ten."

"Which is absolutely crazy because your jumps are amazing."

Danny snorted. "The judges would have deducted points on that last jump."

"They're idiots. Honestly, I don't get why you don't score higher. My routines," he pressed a hand to his chest, "are so technical. It might look perfect, but there's no feeling to it. When you skate," he sighed, tilting his head as his mouth stretched into a dreamy grin, "it's like poetry in motion."

"Really? Poetry in motion? That's what you're going with?" Danny resisted the urge to burst out laughing.

Phantom puffed out his pink cheeks. "So I'm not great with flowing descriptions. What I'm trying to say is that I love watching you skate. There's just so much emotion to it. It really sucks people in and keeps them captivated until the very end."

Danny shifted awkwardly, his cheeks warming. "You came all the way down here just to tell me you like the way I skate?"

"Is that weird?" Phantom scratched at the back of his head. "Yeah, I guess that's pretty weird." He bit his lower lip as he lifted his green eyes back to Danny. "Maybe we could get a drink sometime? Coffee or, if you don't like that, hot chocolate."

Danny blinked, his brow furrowing for a moment, "Wait. Are you asking me out on a date?"

"Yeah, I guess I wasn't being as smooth as I thought."

The heat crept farther across Danny's face. Words completely failed him. Why was the number one men's figure skater asking him out? Danny was just an average skater, barely in reach of the top ten. It was like if a prince decided to date a pauper. It didn't make any sense.

"Um, well," Danny reached up to scratch behind his ear, "I guess technically I'm done with practice for today. I was just trying to get in a little extra training." His face felt hot, like getting blasted by heat after opening the oven, when he saw the smile slowly growing on Phantom's face and the way his eyes lit up with excitement. "So I suppose it wouldn't hurt if I called it early to get coffee with you."

When Phantom took his hand, Danny was glad for the gloves. His hands were all sweaty and gross with his nervousness. Danny tried to appear calm and collected as they skated toward the exit of the rink hand in hand, but inside his brain was screaming, completely disbelieving that this was actually happening.


	60. Christmas Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vlad just wants to spend his Christmas alone in his study.  
> Characters: Vlad and Danny

Vlad sipped from his glass, the alcohol burning down his throat. Then he set the glass down on the table next to his chair. The clunk of the glass hitting the hard wood sounded louder in the quiet study, lit only by the crackling fire before him. To his right, the heavy curtains had a small part in them, allowing him to see the darkness outside sprinkled by snowflakes lazily falling to blanket the ground.

He knew there were other places he could spend his Christmas, but he didn't need to be around others to be reminded of his bitter loneliness. If he was going to wallow in it, he could do it by himself without having to put on a false face. He would much rather sit in the dark, sipping his alcohol, than joining the other ghosts for their annual Christmas party.

Staring into the flickering flames of the fire, Vlad lifted his glass for yet another sip of his quickly disappearing alcohol. He pressed the glass to his lips then paused as a tickle of cold ran through him. His mouth pressed thin as he put down his glass, a bit harder than he meant. He stood, wishing to rid himself quickly of whatever annoying ghost dared to enter his home. He phased through the floor of his study and down into his laboratory.

"Daniel," he growled when he spied the young hero standing just before his opened portal.

Daniel offered a wincing grinning, standing up straighter with his hands behind his back. "H-Hi, Vlad."

After a moment of silently glaring, Vlad sighed, folding his arms. "What are you doing here, Daniel? I thought we had our own Christmas truce. You leave me alone, and I leave you alone. That was the deal. Now you wish to break it eight years later?"

"Not breaking it, no," Daniel said, looking away as he shifted his weight from foot to foot. Even at twenty-four, the man could still come off as that same nervous, anxious fourteen year old Vlad had first met.

"Spit it out, Daniel," Vlad ordered, having little patience at the moment to deal with him.

"The thing is," Daniel brought a hand forward to scratch at his cheek, "I've had the chance to think about things over the years. And well," he coughed, his cheeks turning pink, "I thought it was sad that you always spent Christmas alone."

"I don't need your pity," Vlad snapped.

"N-Not pity!" Daniel sighed, his body deflating. "Look. I was going to just drop this off and leave. I was kind of hoping to get out before you even realized I was here. Yes, I was trying to avoid this meeting since it kind of goes against our Christmas truce. But I guess I forgot you would immediately notice my presence when I came through the portal. Sorry." He brought his other arm forward, holding a rectangular package wrapped in Christmas paper. Staring down at it, he frowned, almost like he was uncertain about the whole thing now that he was standing in front of Vlad. "Anyway, merry Christmas." He held out the present.

Vlad eyed it warily, half suspicious of it being a trap. But it wouldn't be Daniel's style for this to be some kind of trick. Daniel was too good hearted to offer Vlad a cruel gift on Christmas. Taking the present, Vlad wondered curiously what it could be when it weighed so little. It was almost like nothing was in the present. He peeled off the wrapping paper, taking his time, unlike some eager child. Under the wrapping paper, he found a simple white box. He hesitated before opening the lid of the box. He couldn't imagine what Daniel might have gotten him for a gift, but the green and gold scarf wouldn't have made the list. After staring at the gift for several minutes, he lifted his gaze curiously to Daniel.

"Sorry it's not really that good." Daniel wouldn't meet the older half ghost's gaze as he rubbed awkwardly at his elbow. "Dad's more of a needlepoint guy, so I kind of looked up knitting instructions online. I'm pretty sure I messed it up in a few places, but I was stuck thinking 'what do you get the guy who runs multibillion dollar companies?' You could buy anything you want." His voice trailed off, and after a moment, he looked back to Vlad. "You can tell me if you don't like it."

Vlad huffed at that comment as he took the scarf out of the box. Tucking the box under his arm, he wrapped the scarf around his neck. "And why wouldn't I like it?" He stared down his nose at the young man. Though his tone was harsh, he actually appreciated the gift greatly. He couldn't recall the last time someone thought to give him a gift, and he certainly never thought Daniel would give him a Christmas present. Their truce was supposed to be a time where they left each other alone instead of rekindling the usual fighting between them. Yet Daniel went out of his way to gift him something. It was so typically Daniel, but Vlad couldn't deny the action touched him deeply.

Daniel blinked as his cheeks reddened. "Ah, well, it's just-" He shrugged. "I didn't know if you would like something handmade - poorly handmade at that. You always have your fancy suits and looking all suave and refined. Whereas my scarf looks, um, like something that would get thrown in the trash."

Vlad clicked his tongue as he shook his head. "You're too hard on yourself." He lifted one end of the scarf, examining the knitting. "It's fairly good for a first attempt. I can tell you it took me quite a few tries to get the hang of knitting." He pondered for a moment. "I don't have any gift prepared for you. But if you like, I can offer you some help learning more about knitting."

Daniel blinked, completely stunned by the offer. Then a smile spread wide over his face, reminding Vlad far too much of Jack. "I'd like that."


	61. The Ski Lodge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was supposed to be a fun trip with his friends. Unfortunately, Dash wasn’t having much fun.  
> Characters: Dash x Danny

Dash glared at the fire in front of him. The stupid crackling fire. He was supposed to be out skiing on the slopes with his friends and having fun. Instead, he was stuck inside the lobby of the ski lodge with his injured foot resting on a cushion as he sat by the fire. His ankle wasn't broken, but he had twisted it badly enough of on their first day of skiing that he couldn't bear putting any weight on that foot. The whole trip was ruined!

For him, anyway. His friends were having a jolly good time without him. He hated it. Sure, he would say he wanted his friends to have fun. But he wanted to be out there having fun too. It was boring in the lodge. There was absolutely nothing to do. Everyone was out on the slopes, leaving no one for him to talk to and pass the time. None of the games, which wasn't many, he could see on the shelf nearby was for a single player. Kwan offered to loan him a book to read, but it was some nerdy thing Dash doubted he would understand.

"What has the fire done to offend you?"

Dash jumped in surprise, not expecting the sudden appearance of anyone. He twisted around on the couch to see the man behind him holding an armful of logs for the fire. "What do you want, Fenton?"

Fenton rolled his eyes as he walked around the couch and over to the fireplace. "I was just going to check on the fire. I wouldn't want you to start harassing the rest of the staff because we let it go out while you moped in here."

"I'm not moping," Dash argued in a grumble.

"Sure." Fenton nodded as he snorted. Sitting down on the ledge in front of the fireplace, he placed the logs down. "I know how you're feeling though. I'd rather be out on the slopes too. Unfortunately," he sighed, "I only got to come here because I'm working. So no fun skiing for me."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Dash scowled at him.

"Oh. Right." Danny lifted his hands and rolled his eyes. "I forgot the world revolves around your problems. Sorry." He finished adding logs to keep the fire going then placed the rest in a pile off to the side of the fireplace. "I'll just depart and leave you alone now, _your highness_." He bowed mockingly before he left the lobby of the lodge.

Dash sneered, folding his arms. What gave Fenturd the idea that he could talk to Dash like that? He grumbled to the empty lobby as he focused his gaze on the fire, the only vaguely entertaining thing in the lobby currently.

A little after noon, Dash was nudged awake when someone jabbed a finger, repeatedly, against his shoulder. He jerked up right, blinking and feeling disoriented. He hadn't even realized he nodded off until someone had to wake him. A few skiers had returned to the lodge to take lunch and grab a hot drink. Glancing around, he didn't see any of his friends. With a frown, he turned his gaze to see who woke him up then frowned even deeper.

"What do you want, Fenton?" He shifted on the couch, trying to get comfortable, but it just felt awkward having to keep his leg up. Why couldn't he heal faster? He hated being injured. He had dealt with injuries enough because of football.

Fenton glared down at him. "Well, I was going to give you this nice lunch of tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich and a nice cup of hot chocolate. But if you don't want it, I'll just let you starve." He started to walk away, but Dash shot a hand out and grabbed the red fleece vest the other man wore.

"Um, now that you mention it," Dash blushed when his stomach growled, "I am feeling a bit hungry."

"I thought you might be." Fenton set the tray down on the table in front of the couch.

"But really, Fenton, tomato soup and grilled cheese?" Dash repositioned himself so he could eat his lunch.

"Hey! It's a classic cold day duo!" Fenton argued. "Jazz would make it for me after I came in from playing in the snow. She'd even cut off the crust."

"Pfft! You're crazy. The crust is the best part." Dash picked up one of the triangles then dipped a corner into the tomato soup.

"You dip it in the soup?" Fenton gasped like it deeply offended him. "That is so wrong."

"Are you kidding?" Dash lifted an eyebrow at the other man. "This is the best way to eat it."

"Whatever." Fenton shook his head. "I'll see you around later." He waved before walking off again.

"Weirdo," Dash snorted then took a large bite out of the grilled cheese sandwich. He enjoyed the meal, reminding him of winter days when he was a child and his mother would make it for him. But he frowned as he leaned back on the couch, sipping the hot chocolate. Fenton didn't have to go to the trouble of checking up on him or bringing him lunch. Dash was fairly certain that wasn't in the job description of working at the ski lodge.

It happened the next day too. While all his friends went out to enjoy the slopes, Dash was stuck inside, receiving occasional visits from Fenton. The day after, they ate lunch together, and the next day, Fenton sat with him during a down period in his job to play cards with him. By Friday, Dash actually found he was looking forward to when Fenton stopped by because it broke up the monotony of simply sitting there bored out of his mind. He was surprised Fenton didn't get fed up with him, especially with all the little jabs he tossed at the other man, but Fenton just rolled with it and shrugged them off like Dash being a jerk had no impact on him. For some reason, though, Dash hated it. He would have preferred Fenton getting angry at him and storming off, or something. Except then, he wouldn't have anyone to fill the quiet time.

On their last night at the lodge, his friends all celebrated, though none of them wanted to leave. Dash's ankle was finally feeling better. He could walk on it, for a short while before he had to take his weight off it again. Instead of celebrating with his friends, Dash stepped outside. While his ankle was hurt, he didn't get to go outside much and the fresh air was nice after being cooped up inside for a week. He leaned on the porch railing, taking in the snowy landscape stretched out before him.

"It's pretty nice up here, isn't it?"

Dash jerked around and stared, his eyes growing wide. Fenton sat on a bench set against the wall of the lodge with a steaming cup of hot chocolate in his hands.

"You have to stop doing that," Dash grumbled with a hand over his heart. Fenton was going to give him a heart attack with the way he always sneaked up on the jock.

"Sorry." But Fenton didn't sound remotely sorry, especially with the tiny smirk. "What are you doing out here? I thought you'd be partying with your friends."

"I needed some air." Dash shrugged, leaning back against the railing. "I've been stuck inside for so long. I haven't even had the chance to enjoy anything about being up here."

"Oh." Fenton frowned. Then he stood and walked over to join Dash leaning against the railing. "I like coming out here at night to look at the stars. They seem so much brighter up here."

"Nerd." Dash snorted, but when he looked up at the sky, he could see what Fenton meant. The stars definitely twinkled brighter here than back home in Amity Park. "Well, thanks for making this week tolerable."

Fenton snapped his head around, shock splashed across his face. "You're being nice to me?"

"What?" Dash glared. "Is that not allowed?"

"No." Fenton shook his head. "I'm just," he shrugged, "surprised."

"Well, I am capable of it." Dash sniffed as he lifted his head and stared at the trees covered in snow.

Fenton bumped the jock's arm with his elbow. "Well, you made my job more tolerable so thanks."

Dash glanced back over, catching the small smile fleeting across the man's face. Maybe it was just the atmosphere of being out at the ski lodge with a clear starry night sky overhead, but something came over him in that moment. He leaned over, his hand reaching up to cup Fenton's cheek as their lips met. He could taste the hot chocolate still on Fenton's lips as the man stood stiffly next to him. He was about to pull away until Fenton returned the kiss.


	62. The Trip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When his co-worker invited him on a trip, Danny thought they would focus on work for most of the trip.  
> Characters: Dash x Danny

Danny sipped at his hot chocolate, careful not to burn his mouth or tongue. The rich warm chocolate was greatly welcomed after spending far too many hours out in the cold. He smiled with the mug still raised to his lips. Despite the cold, he had a lot of fun.

"Sorry about all of that." The couch dipped as the other man sat down with a heavy sigh. He raked a hand through his blond hair then turned to face Danny. "She demanded a bedtime story before she would go to sleep." He winced. "And, uh, sorry about dragging you here."

Danny shook his head as he leaned forward to set his mug on the table in front of the couch. "I didn't mind. I've never been skiing before, and the snowball fight was pretty fun." He leaned back and turned so he was facing the other man, with one leg half on the couch and an arm resting on the back of it. "But I am a little confused, Dash. I thought we were supposed to be working." He lifted an eyebrow and was surprised to see Dash's cheeks growing slightly pink.

"We were - Are!" Dash rubbed at his eyes. "That was the plan. I didn't expect my family to show up and mess up that plan."

"Like I said," Danny shrugged, "I didn't mind." A smile tugged at his mouth. "I didn't expect you to have such a cute kid." _Or for you to look so cute while you were playing with her_. Danny hoped he wasn't wincing. He really shouldn't have thoughts like that about his co-worker. But here he was, unable to stop thinking about Dash playing with his daughter and helping her with the skis and making sure she was okay as they made their way down the mountain. And Danny totally never had inappropriate thoughts about Dash when they were at work. Not at all.

Except he did. And this trip was not helping with those thoughts. Nor was the fact that they would be sharing a room that night.

"I wasn't supposed to get her until next week, but my ex had a family emergency and didn't want to bring Chloe along if things go," Dash winced, "badly with her father's health. She thought it would be a lot better for Chloe to come on this trip instead."

"That seems like a good idea." Danny nodded, understanding perfectly. But he was also so used to dealing with death and ghosts that he was almost numb to the concept. For a young girl like Chloe, though, it was probably better for her to experience something more pleasant than dealing with the death of a family member for the time being. "So you're on good terms with your ex?" Before today, Danny wasn't even aware that Dash had a daughter. They didn't exactly talk about personal stuff while discussing work.

"We try to be." Dash scratched at his cheek, his gaze drifting to the fire crackling in the fireplace. "We figured things would be better for Chloe if we try to keep everything civil between us. We haven't really had any major fighting since the divorce three years ago, so it seems to be working."

"That's good." Danny chewed on his lower lip. "So you've been split up for three years? And you haven't had any serious relationships during that time?"

"I've dated-" Dash frowned. "I've had dates, but I guess I wouldn't say any of them were serious. It's," he scratched behind his ear, "not always easy dating with a daughter to take care of. I know I only have Chloe half the time, but when I do have her, pretty much all my focus is on her. Some of the people I've dated haven't exactly liked being put second. I know at least one of them didn't want to be involved in helping to raise a child. So as soon as I get the hint that someone might not be interested in having children, I kind of just shut down, and that's pretty much it for that relationship."

Danny nodded, picking absently at a loose thread on the cuff of his jeans. "I can get that. Your daughter's a big part of your life. If the person you're dating doesn't want to be included in that part of your life, then they definitely aren't the one for you. The right person for you is going to love that little girl just as much as you do." He bit down on his tongue before he kept rambling and embarrassed himself further.

"Yeah, that was my thinking too." Dash's mouth quirked in a small smile that made Danny's stomach twist. "But sometimes it feels like that person will never be found."

Danny was half ready to shout, "Me! I'm right here!" But he doubted saying that would go over well. They were merely co-workers after all.

"Are they going to kiss now?"

Danny's face flared red as Dash twisted around on the couch.

"Uh oh!" Chloe ducked behind the doorway, but the ruffle of her nightgown could still be seen.

"I guess we got found out." Dash's cousin smiled, not looking the least bit guilty about spying on them. "I'm with Chloe though." His smile widened with a touch of mischievousness gleaming in his blue eyes. "Are you going to kiss?"

"Out!" Dash pointed at them as he stood. "You're supposed to be asleep right now, Chloe."

Chloe stuck her head back around the doorframe. "I just wanted to see if you were going to kiss." She pouted, but Dash didn't let up on the stern stare he was giving her.

"Okay." Dash's cousin picked Chloe up. "I think it's time you go back to bed." He waved as he walked down the hall. "Have fun, you two!"

Dash rubbed at his eyes. "I'm sorry about that." He sat back down on the couch. "My family can be a bit crazy."

"It's the same with mine." Danny chuckled, but he couldn't make his blush go away. "But, um, I certainly wouldn't mind if you wanted to kiss me." Burying his face in his hands, he felt like his whole body was set on fire. "I can't believe I just said that. Forget it. Just wipe that from your memory." There was nothing more embarrassing he could think of to say or do than that. He got up from the couch. "I should probably just go. It's late, and we're not going to get any real work done tonight. So I shouldn't take up any more of your time."

Before Danny could even take a step, a hand grabbed his wrist, stopping him. Hesitantly, he turned his head to look back at Dash, who had his head bowed, seeming uncharacteristically shy.

"I," Dash paused to take a deep breath, "would be lying if I said I didn't have ulterior motives when I invited you along."

Danny's brow creased as he ran the statement over and over again in his head. "What ulterior motives?"

"To woo you!"

"I swear, Josh, if you don't leave, I'm kicking your butt!" Dash threatened, turning his head to shout at the doorway.

"But you know I'm right," Josh replied in a singsong tone.

Dash ground his teeth, his cheeks bright red. His gaze darted to Danny then looked away again as he scratched at his cheek, looking rather embarrassed. "I'm seriously sorry about my family. Josh lives to make my life difficult."

Danny shrugged awkwardly. "I have a sister. She lives to overanalyze everything I do."

"So you get what I mean." Dash smirked for a second then sighed. "Well, this didn't exactly go as I planned. Everything kind of fell apart after my family decided to butt in." Frowning, he cast his gaze toward Danny. "My plan was to woo you this weekend." He winced and rubbed at his eyes. "Wow. That sounds really lame when I say it out loud."

"Yeah, maybe just a bit," Danny agreed with a laugh. His heart was hammering in his chest. Was this real? Did he accidentally fall asleep on the couch and this was all a dream? He didn't want to wake up just yet if he was sleeping. "So how were you planning to woo me exactly?"

"Well," Dash stepped closer, though he seemed hesitant like he was waiting for Danny to protest, "we have a nice fire going, and I think there's a bottle of wine somewhere in the lodge." He stepped up right in front of him, placing his hand on Danny's hip.

"So drinking was the plan?" Danny tried to give him a disapproving stare, but he couldn't help feeling a bit giddy about the whole situation. Dash was practically within kissing range.

"No, not entirely."

"Just kiss him already," Josh whispered from the doorway.

"I swear-"

Danny stopped Dash from turning away from him. Then he leaned in and kissed him before his courage left him. Dash stood stiffly at first, caught by surprised, but he slowly relaxed and returned the kiss.

"Yes!" Josh whooped, causing Dash to jerk back and break the kiss. Josh quickly ducked out of sight, and Danny laughed.

"Um, maybe we should continue this somewhere a little more private," Danny suggested. While Josh's little interjections were kind of amusing, it would be easier for them to talk if Josh wasn't constantly shouting things, which in turn seemed to provoke Dash.

"Sound like a good idea," Dash agreed with a smile.


	63. Playing in the Snow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> His life may be filled with a lot of crazy moments, but Danny enjoys the nice quiet ones with his family the most.  
> Characters: Dash x Danny x Kwan

"Look! Look!" The little girl eagerly tugged on his sleeve, trying to drag him toward the far corner of the yard.

Danny chuckled as he followed along. They made sure the children were bundled up nice and warm before letting them out to play in the snow. With the thick winter coat, she almost waddled like a little purple penguin. While the others were out in the yard, Danny had stayed inside to bake some cookies as a little treat before dinner.

"Look!" she encouraged again when they reached where Dash and Kwan stood. She turned around to face him with a big proud grin on her face.

"Wow!" Danny grinned as he crouched down in front of her. "That snowman's even bigger than you are, Cassie! Did you do that all by yourself?"

Her cheeks darkened as she bowed her head shyly. "I may have had some help."

"Cassie did most of the work," Dash said, placing a hand on her head and ruffling her curly black locks. "We just lifted her up so she could put it all together."

"But you helped with the base of it." Cassie tilted her head up, her bright brown eyes shining up at Dash. "I never could have rolled that much snow by myself."

"When you're older, you'll be able to roll an even bigger base all by yourself," Kwan said encouragingly.

Danny smiled, but then he sat up a little straighter, glancing around the yard. "Where did your brother go?" Though he looked around, he didn't see the little boy anywhere in the yard. He trusted Dash and Kwan to keep watch over their children, but he couldn't help a spike of panic rushing through him. If they adopted ghost children, Danny would be able to easily keep track of them. Unfortunately, his ghost sense didn't work on werewolves.

"Rawr!" A blur shot out from behind the snowman, hitting Danny in the chest and knocking him backward into the snow. The others laughed as the little boy sat triumphantly on Danny's chest.

"Oh! You got me!" Danny dropped his arms out to his side and pretended to be dead.

"I'm the best hunter ever!" the boy cried then turned his head to grin up at Dash and Kwan. Being young still, sometimes the wolf side slipped out. His canines were a little too sharp, and the tips of his ears were furry and pointed. Thankfully, he managed to keep his claws from growing out.

"You're very good at it," Kwan agreed.

"Excellent work laying in wait before pouncing, Bentley," Dash added, and the boy puffed out his chest at the praise.

A grin tugged at Danny's mouth. While Bentley was distracted, Danny sat up quickly and proceeded to tickle the boy. Bentley shrieked with laughter, squirming to get away. Soon after, Dash, Kwan, and Cassie joined in until they were all trying to tickle each other. Then it somehow evolved into a snowball fight. The early evening was filled with laughter as snowballs flew all around the yard.

By the time they entered the house, they were all tired and ready to eat. Danny let the children each take one cookie to snack on while he, Dash, and Kwan worked on preparing dinner. Sometimes he couldn't believe how his life turned out. When he first moved here, he could barely call his apartment a livable place. It almost made him regret taking the great job offer. After several years of sharing an apartment together, they sat down and discussed the possibility of adopting. Danny suspected it was an idea that was on all of their minds ever since Sawyer stayed with them. Ending up with two werewolf pups wasn't exactly what they had planned, but. For seven months now, they had raised Cassie and Bentley, and he thought they would all agree this was the best thing to happen to them. After finally admitting their feelings for each other, of course.

"Are you two excited about going to Amity Park next week?" Kwan asked, placing plates in front of Cassie and Bentley who sat next to each at the round dinner table.

"Yeah!" Cassie grinned while the adults took their places around the table.

"Will there be snow there?" Bentley nearly tore off a chunk of steak with his teeth. When he caught Dash's stern stare, he sheepishly dropped it then picked up his fork and knife.

"I think there should be some snow," Danny said. "But you'll have to control your transformation better when we're there. The people of Amity Park might know about ghosts, but I'm not sure they're ready to know about werewolves."

Bentley pouted.

"Do they know about you?" Cassie asked before chomping off the end of her broccoli.

Danny shook his head. "It's a secret. Well, there are a few others that know. But most of the time, you'll have to keep my secret too. Can you do that?"

The two children nodded, and Danny grinned. Cassie and Bentley were still quite young, but they were pretty good at keeping secrets. There were a few times when they almost got caught because their ears and tails slipped out, but they managed to cover it up before anyone started asking questions. That was one of the toughest parts about raising the werewolf siblings. Sometimes Danny worried they weren't doing a good job. Werewolves generally survived as a pack. He knew there were some that broke off and lived alone, but the children typically remained with the pack until they were old enough to hunt. For Cassie and Bentley, that wasn't possible.

"Did you get all your homework done?" Kwan asked, the question helping to distract Danny.

"I did!" Cassie grinned brightly while Bentley poked at his vegetables as he shrank down in his seat.

"Bentley?" Dash's glare only made the boy look like he was trying to disappear even more.

"I did most of it," Bentley said quietly.

Danny sighed inwardly. This wasn't the first time they were having a conversation like this. "You know you can ask us for help whenever you need it."

"I know." Bentley frowned at what remained of his dinner. "But I don't want to bother you too much. What if you decide you don't want to keep us because I'm too dumb to understand my homework?"

Danny jerked upright in his chair. He spent so much time worrying about whether the children liked living with them and if they were raising the children right that he forgot to consider that the children might have their own worries about this arrangement. "We love you both very much," he told them earnestly. "We love having you here, and we hope you feel the same."

"Yeah," Dash reached over to ruffle the boy's hair, "we couldn't have asked for better children. And we're always happy to help you, so you don't have to worry about bothering us with something. We'll do whatever we can to help you, even if it means staying up late to work on some project with you."

"I hope we don't have to do that any time soon," Kwan said with a frown. "You two need your sleep. But what part of your homework are struggling with?"

"Um," Bentley chewed on his lip, his cheeks slightly darker after what the adults said, "the math is confusing. B-But what I'm really having trouble with is the reading assignment." Tears formed in the corner of his eyes.

"Hey," Danny reached across the table to take hold of his hand, "that's okay. We'll sit with you and spend as much time as you need to help you get through your assignments. Okay?"

Bentley nodded and rubbed at his eyes with one hand.

"I'll help too!" Cassie offered.

"There's nothing you need help with?" Kwan asked, giving Cassie a little tickle.

She giggled and wiggled away from him. "There were a few spots I kind of skipped over, but I got most of it by myself."

"I think we'll have a big family study party," Dash said. "Now hurry up and finish your dinners so we can wash the dishes."

Cassie and Bentley groaned about having to do the dishes, but they worked on finishing up their vegetables, which weren't their favorite part of the meal.

Danny smiled as he glanced around at his family. It wasn't what he would have imagined for himself. Ever since the accident that gave him his ghost powers, life was anything but normal. It may have been a crazy journey up until now, but Danny wouldn't dream of changing any of it.


End file.
